Indian Woman Detained by ICE After 35 Years in US Faces Legal Battle Meenu Batra, a 53-year-old Indian-origin woman who has resided in the United States for over three decades, was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Texas, sparking a legal dispute over the legality of her detention. Batra, who has lived in South Texas since 1991, is the sole licensed Punjabi, Hindi, and Urdu court interpreter in the state, having worked for years to assist immigrants in legal proceedings. Her detention occurred on March 17 at Harlingen International Airport while she was traveling to Milwaukee for an immigration court assignment. ICE officers arrested her, handcuffed her, and transferred her to the El Valle detention facility in Raymondville, despite her claims of holding valid legal status and a work permit. Batra, who was born in India, fled to the U.S. as a child in 1991 after her parents were killed during the anti-Sikh violence of 1984. She has since raised four children in Texas, with her son recently enlisting in the U.S. Army. During her detention, she described being held without food or water for 24 hours and denied medical treatment, calling the experience "bizarre" and likening it to being treated like a criminal. Speaking to The Guardian from jail, she expressed confusion about her situation, stating, "I don't know how else to put it. Here I am just staring at the wall, wondering what exactly I'm doing here, but also what anybody is doing here." Her legal team, led by immigration lawyer Deepak Ahluwalia, has filed a habeas corpus petition challenging her detention. Ahluwalia explained that Batra was granted a "withholding of removal" order in 2000 by an immigration court, which determined she would face persecution in India. This legal protection means the U.#ice #meenu_batra #deepak_ahluwalia #harlingen_international_airport #el_valle_detention_facility
