Adani Dias leaves India ‘abruptly’ as visa is denied

The Chief of the Bureau of Australia’s state-run news outlet in New Delhi has stated that she had to leave India ‘abruptly’ after government officials denied her a visa extension.

The public announcement by Avani Dias, the journalist, came after she and her team from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) were questioned by an officer from the Criminal Intelligence Department when they were producing a program on the Indian government’s alleged targeted assassination of pro-Khalistan separatists in western countries.

Sources in New Delhi have described her version as “misleading.”

“Last week, I had to leave India abruptly. The Modi Government told me my visa extension would be denied, saying my reporting “crossed a line”. After Australian Government intervention, I got a mere two-month extension…less than 24 hours before my flight. We were also told my election accreditation would not come through because of an Indian Ministry directive,” said Ms Dias in a post on ‘X’.

“We left on day one of voting in the national election in what Modi calls ‘the Mother of democracy’, ” said Ms. Dias in the same post.

The Australian journalist was a foreign national working in New Delhi as the Bureau Chief of ABC on a J1 (Journalist) class visa.

Her visa was due to expire on April 20, and she applied for an extension on Jan. 1.

However, the renewal process of her Indian visa coincided with ABC’s coverage of the situation in Punjab.