YouTuber Karl Rock returns to India after more than 500 days

Union Home Ministry officials had stated that the New Zealand national had been restricted from entering India till 2022 for violating terms and conditions of his visa. “He was on a tourist visa but engaging in business activities,” an official had said.

His wife Manisha Malik subsequently filed a petition in the Delhi High Court against blacklisting and cancellation of his visa. The petition filed in court states that Karl had strictly been abiding by the laws of the country and conditions of visa, and that there has not been a single complaint against him. After he got married, he was issued an X-2 visa, meant for spouses and children of Indian nationals, which was valid till 2024. One of the conditions of the visa was that he had to exit India every 180 days or intimate the Foreigner Regional Registration Office (FRRO) concerned.

His last entry into India was in November 2019. He had enrolled at Landour School of Languages in Mussoorie to learn Hindi but was stranded due to the nationwide lockdown in March 2020. As the 180-day mark was approaching, he had tried to intimate the FRRO for a visa extension. The application was rejected and he was issued an exit permit instead. While he was exiting India to travel to Dubai and Pakistan in October 2020, his visa was cancelled at the Delhi Airport. In Dubai, he applied for a new visa and was then called to the Indian High Commission and informed that he had been blacklisted. The petition stated that despite complying with all conditions, his visa was cancelled while he was exiting Delhi.

Speaking to The Indian Express over the phone from New Zealand, Karl had earlier said, “I was not given a reason why I had been blacklisted. I was told to reach out to the Ministry of Home Affairs. When my wife tried to, she was ignored and did not get any help.”

Originally from New Zealand, Karl shares tips for foreigners travelling in India on YouTube. He got married in 2019 and stayed with his wife and her family in Delhi’s Pitampura.