Overview
- ICE agents in plain clothes detained Meenu Batra on March 17 at Harlingen International Airport after she cleared security for a work flight to Wisconsin.
- Batra holds withholding of removal granted by a judge in 2000, which bars deportation to India yet leaves a final removal order that DHS cites to keep her in custody.
- Her lawyers filed a habeas petition and a request to block transfers in the Southern District of Texas, and the court set April 21 for the government’s response.
- Her filing says agents showed no visible badges, kept her about 24 hours without food or water, denied needed medication, and posed her in handcuffs for photos allegedly “for social media.”
- Reporters link the arrest to policies that target people with final removal orders, including more airport stops and possible deportations to third countries willing to accept them.