35 Years in the US, Then Detained Overnight: Indian-Origin Court Interpreter Meenu Batra Held by ICE in Texas

What began as a routine work trip has spiralled into a legal and human crisis for Meenu Batra, a 53-year-old interpreter who has lived in the United States for more than three decades and built a career helping immigrants navigate the justice system.

Batra, widely known in Texas legal circles as a rare certified interpreter fluent in Hindi, Punjabi and Urdu, was detained on March 17 by officers of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) at Harlingen International Airport. She was on her way to Milwaukee for a professional assignment when plainclothes agents stopped her after she cleared airport security, questioned her immigration status, and took her away in an unmarked vehicle.

More than a month later, she remains in custody at the El Valle Detention Center, with no clear explanation from authorities on why she is being held or where she could be sent.

In a habeas corpus petition and subsequent statements, Batra has alleged serious lapses in her treatment following the arrest. She claims she was held for nearly 24 hours without food or water and denied medication prescribed for her cholesterol for several days. She has also alleged that officers made her pose for photographs in a staged manner to make it appear as though she was still handcuffed, telling her the images were meant “for social media” - an experience she described as humiliating and degrading.

Her detention has reignited debate around a little-understood immigration status known as “withholding of removal.” In 2000, an immigration judge granted Batra this protection after determining she could face persecution if returned to India, where she had fled anti-Sikh violence in the late 1980s. The status allows her to legally live and work in the US but does not provide a pathway to permanent residency.

The Department of Homeland Security has maintained that Batra is subject to a “final order of removal.” However, her attorney, Deepak Ahluwalia, disputes this interpretation, arguing that withholding of removal is not equivalent to a deportation order. He has raised concerns that authorities may attempt to deport her to a third country - a practice that has become more visible in recent US immigration enforcement, where migrants are sometimes sent to countries they have no prior connection to.

Beyond the legal arguments, the case has taken a heavy personal toll. Batra, a single mother of four, has spent most of her adult life in Texas. Her sudden detention has disrupted her family, with one son pausing his college education, another cancelling work commitments, and her youngest struggling to complete high school amid the uncertainty. 

From inside El Valle, Batra has described a bleak environment, recounting instances of detainees suffering medical emergencies, mental health distress, and even suicide attempts. She says some detainees are suddenly taken away without explanation, leaving others unsure whether they have been released, deported, or transferred elsewhere. Her case is now headed to federal court, where a judge is expected to examine the legality of her detention. 

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