Manikarnika Dutta, a distinguished Indian historian affiliated with the University of Oxford, is facing deportation from the UK after the Home Office ruled that she had spent excessive time outside the country conducting research in Indian archives.
Dutta, 37, currently serves as an assistant professor in the School of History at University College Dublin. Her work requires her to visit archives in various Indian cities and attend international academic engagements. However, the UK Home Office has denied her application for Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR), citing a breach of the residency requirements.
Under UK immigration rules, individuals applying for ILR based on a decade-long residency cannot have spent more than 548 days outside the UK during that period. The Home Office claims that Dutta exceeded this limit, having been abroad for 691 days. It also argued that she lacks a family life in the UK—despite living in south London with her husband, Dr. Souvik Naha, a fellow academic with whom she has been married for over ten years.
Dutta, who has lived in the UK for 12 years and previously studied at Oxford and Bristol, expressed shock at the decision. “I never imagined this would happen to me,” she told The Observer. She initially arrived in the UK in 2012 on a student visa and later switched to a spouse visa after her marriage. While her husband’s ILR application was approved, hers was rejected.
Her lawyer, Naga Kandiah, argued that her research trips to India were essential for her academic career and should not be treated as optional absences. “Without these trips, she would not have been able to complete her research or maintain her academic standing,” he stated.
After her ILR rejection, Dutta requested an administrative review, but the Home Office upheld its decision. The department warned that she must leave the UK or risk a 10-year re-entry ban and possible prosecution for overstaying. In response, her legal team has launched a legal challenge against the ruling.
The case has sparked concern within academic circles, with colleagues voicing their support. “This situation severely damages the UK’s reputation as a global academic hub, especially when international collaboration is crucial,” Kandiah emphasized.
Dutta’s husband, a senior lecturer at the University of Glasgow, described the ordeal as deeply distressing. “This decision has been incredibly stressful for both of us, taking a significant psychological toll,” he said.
The Home Office has agreed to reconsider its decision within the next three months. Meanwhile, the UK government has intensified its immigration enforcement efforts, leading to increased deportations of failed asylum seekers, foreign criminals, and others deemed to have violated immigration laws—a stance reminiscent of policies pursued by former U.S. President Donald Trump.
