- About 450 Indians were granted their British citizenship under the government’s ‘Windrush Scheme’, set up in the wake of an immigration scandal in 2018. British Home Secretary Sajid Javid said at least 455 Indians had confirmed their nationality as British.
- Discussing the issue at the British parliament on February 7, Javid explained that those who requested for a confirmation on their residency status were issued a document to confirm the same. Of the 455, about 367 had entered the UK before 1973, and the others are known to have arrived in the later years or were family members of those who previously moved to the UK.
About Windrush Generation
- According to the UK Government, the ‘Windrush generation’ refers to Commonwealth nationals who settled in the UK before 1973. The Immigration Act 1971 provided protection for Commonwealth citizens if they have lived here for more than five years and if they arrived in the country before 1973.
- The Act provided that those here before it came into force should be treated as having been given indefinite leave to enter or remain in the UK, as well as retaining a right of abode for certain Commonwealth citizens. Therefore everyone that arrived in the UK before 1973 was given settlement rights and was not required to get any specific documentation to prove those rights.
About Windrush Scandal
- The Windrush scandal is a British political scandal, which involved the immigration status of the members of the Windrush generation. The generation comprises British African Caribbean people, Indians and several other Asians who were mainly brought to the UK on a ship – HMT Empire Windrush – in 1948 as Britain faced an acute labor shortage.
- The scandal blew up when the home office, November 2017 onwards, is said to have threatened the children of Commonwealth immigrants who arrived in the UK before 1973 with deportation if they could not provide valid immigration documents as proof.
