Indian court rejects visa appeal by two Nigerian students
SKAiF NewsNG SNN
The Karnataka High Court in Bengaluru has dismissed an appeal filed by two Nigerian nationals seeking an extension of their student visas and release from a foreigners’ detention centre in India.
The applicants, Obinna Okafor and John Vandefan, had challenged an earlier ruling delivered on August 14, 2025, by a single-judge bench that rejected their petitions.
However, a division bench comprising Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru and Justice C. M. Poonacha upheld the earlier decision in a ruling delivered on Thursday.
In its judgment, the court stated that foreign nationals do not possess the legal right to demand the issuance or renewal of an Indian visa.
Citing constitutional provisions, the bench noted that the rights to move freely and reside anywhere in India, as outlined in Article 19(1)(d) and 19(1)(e) of the Indian Constitution, apply only to Indian citizens.
“The right to decline a grant or extension of a visa is clearly an unfettered sovereign right,” the court ruled, adding that authorities are not obligated to provide explanations when denying or cancelling a visa.
The court also observed that the visa cancellations were linked to allegations by Indian authorities involving drug-related activities and impersonation through possession of another person’s passport.
It further noted inconsistencies in the appellants’ claims of being students, pointing out that while one of them had secured admission to a college in Tamil Nadu, he was found residing in Bengaluru at the time.
Counsel to the appellants, Remmy Igwe, had argued that the movement restriction order issued in February 2024 and their subsequent detention occurred before their visas expired, which he said violated constitutional safeguards and principles of natural justice.
Dismissing the appeal, the judges held that the applicants had no enforceable right to remain in the country once their visas had been cancelled.
