Karl Rock New Zealand YouTuber Karl Rock's wife approaches Delhi High Court after India blacklists him, cancels his visa
New Delhi/IBNS: YouTuber Karl Rock, a New Zealand national, is hoping that he will be finally heard after allegedly being turned down by Indian authorities, including the Home Ministry and the Indian High Commission, as his wife Manisha Malik has approached the Delhi High Court challenging his blacklisting and visa cancellation by the Indian government.
According to ANI, Rock has been blacklisted for a year for violating the norms of Indian visa.
The vlogger, whose full name is Karl Edward Rice, in a YouTube video said that his visa was cancelled when he was leaving for Dubai and Pakistan in October 2020.
He makes videos on travel safety, interesting destinations, avoiding scams and also about his family life -- in both English and Hindi -- and has approximately 1.8 million subscribers to his YouTube channel.
Rock has been married to Manisha Malik of Delhi since 2019.
"I left India in October 2020 to travel to Dubai and Pakistan. When I left through the New Delhi International Airport, they cancelled my Visa. They would not tell me why they were cancelling my visa," Rock said in a YouTube video posted yesterday and titled "Why I haven't seen my wife in 269 days #Blacklisted".
Challenging that the government's decision is "arbitrary and unreasonable" under Article 21, Malik has approached the Delhi High Court, according to a news agency report.
"New Zealand origin vlogger Karl Rock has been blacklisted by the Government of India for violating multiple visa norms," a ministry official told ANI on this day, "He was found doing business on a tourist visa and has been barred for one year; his visa has been cancelled."
Following his marriage to Malik, Karl now was granted an X-2 Visa (meant for spouses/children of an Indian citizen) which was valid up to May 2024, PTI reported. This visa requires the holder to leave the country every 180 days or intimate the Foreigner Regional Registration Office concerned, it said.
In order to comply with this rule he had left for Dubai last year, the report added.
In the video Rock said that he was called by the Indian High Commission in Dubai and informed that he had been blacklisted.
"We have written multiple emails to the Home Ministry. No reply. My wife turned up at the Home Ministry's doorstep in Delhi. No help," he said.
He also tweeted about his situation tagging New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern.
"They blacklisted me without telling me, giving reasons, or letting me reply," he wrote.
Dear @jacindaardern, the Govt. of India has blocked me from entering India separating me from my wife & family in Delhi. They blacklisted me without telling me, giving reasons, or letting me reply. Please watch my struggle https://t.co/dq0Z98SCFw @NZinIndia @MukteshPardeshi pic.twitter.com/sLM2nk9lR3
— Karl Rock (@iamkarlrock) July 9, 2021
In the same thread he also informed about the petition he has launched to garner support against his visa cancelation by the India authorities. And tagged a bunch of diplomats, journalists and even Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the following tweet in a bid to have himself heard.
While the YouTuber says he is clueless about why he has been blacklisted and stopped from coming to India, a Twitter user reminded him that probably his involvement in the anti-CAA protests as a foreigner prompted the authorities to blacklist him and cancel his visa. Some Twitter users posted screenshots of Rock's December 2019 tweets protesting against the Citizenship Amendment Act. Taking part in India's political activity could be a reason how he might have ended up violating the visa rules, the social media users pointed out to him.
You Violated Rules of Tourist Visa which bars you from getting involved in Political Activism & you are not the only one. You should have thought about it before getting involved in CAA protests pic.twitter.com/e2QagIq1qr
— Dr. Vedika (@vishkanyaaaa) July 9, 2021
In his latest YouTube video, Karl Rock says he donated plasma twice to the Delhi plasma bank and his act was praised by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.
"I love my family and I miss them a lot," he said in the video posted from New Zealand.
Rock said he loves India and though living anywhere else with his wife is not an issue if the Indian authorities disallowed entry, he wouldn't do so as India is their "dream country".
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