Chennai: A fresh row has erupted over the H-1B visa programme after Indian-American former US diplomat Mahvash Siddiqui and economist Dr Dave Brat alleged large-scale fraud centred on Chennai and Hyderabad, two key hubs for Indian visa applicants.
Siddiqui, who served as a US consular officer in Chennai between 2005 and 2007, claimed on the “Parsing Immigration Policy” podcast that 80–90 per cent of H-1B visas issued to Indian applicants during her tenure involved fake degrees, proxy interviews and forged employment documents. She alleged that efforts by consular staff to crack down on such practices were dismissed as “rogue operations” and blocked by political pressure, preventing serious investigations.
Hyderabad’s Ameerpet area was singled out as a hub where fake certificates and employment letters are allegedly sold openly to bolster visa applications. Siddiqui said the Chennai consulate, which handles applications from Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala and Telangana, including Hyderabad, processed over 51,000 visas during her time there, and described fraud and bribery in parts of the Indian system as “widespread”.
On “Steve Bannon’s War Room” podcast, former US Congressman and economist Brat highlighted what he called “industrial-scale fraud”, claiming that about 220,000 H-1B visas were issued via Chennai in 2024 alone, far exceeding the overall annual cap of 85,000 visas. He argued that such alleged abuses undermine US workers by displacing genuinely skilled professionals. Brat also pointed to the dominance of Indian nationals in the programme, noting that about 71 per cent of H-1B visas go to Indians compared with 12 per cent to Chinese applicants, and said this imbalance suggested systemic abuse linked to Chennai and Hyderabad.
Siddiqui further alleged that some applicants avoided interviews with American officers, instead sending proxies to appear on their behalf, while certain hiring managers in India were said to demand bribes in exchange for fake job offers used to support H-1B applications. She claimed political interference shielded those involved, with pressure exerted to drop fraud probes and protect influential figures.
The H-1B programme, designed to attract highly skilled foreign professionals, particularly in science and technology, now faces renewed scrutiny in the US following these allegations, which have sparked debate over both enforcement and the integrity of the system.