India-US may soon sign pact for expedited clearance of some VIPs.
By Raif Karerat
India and the United States are currently hashing out an agreement that would see certain categories of Indian nationals, such as former presidents, prime ministers, other “high dignitaries,” major industrialists, and some film stars become exempt from immigration checks in the U.S.
High-ranking immigration officials from the two world powers recently held a meeting for implementation of the Global Entry, a U.S. Customs and Border Protection program that enables expedited clearance for pre-approved, low-risk travelers upon arrival in the United States, according to The Economic Times.
Two foremost criteria for inclusion of the Global Entry program for any individual is that he or she should not have any criminal record or anyway connected with any money laundering case.
At airports, program members proceed through Global Entry Kiosks, present their specialized, machine-readable passport or U.S. permanent resident card, place their fingerprints on the scanner for verification and complete a customs declaration all in one fell swoop.
The kiosk then issues the traveler a transaction receipt and directs the traveler to baggage claim and the exit.
Thus far, citizens of seven countries are receiving benefits of the United States’ Global Entry program: The Netherlands, Panama, South Korea, Germany, Peru, Mexico, and Canada, while Brazil and India are likely to enter the program in 2016.
According to The Times, every applicant must undergo a rigorous background check by Indian security agencies before sending the name to U.S. authorities, which only give the final nod after executing their own background check.
Security agencies will keep doing background check of every individual included in the list periodically and if any adverse report comes in-between, the individual will be removed from the list, they said.
Renowned Bollywood actor Shahrukh Khan was famously detained at White Plains airport, near New York City, in 2012 when TSA agents felt his name resembled that of someone on the terrorist watch list.
The Press Trust of India news agency reported that Khan was stopped and questioned for more than two hours before being cleared by immigration officials
The incident tainted public opinion of the U.S. in India, and prompted a slew of denouncements from notable figures throughout Bollywood.
He was freed after Yale University officials contacted homeland security and customs officials, the BBC later reported.
There have been also been several incidents in the past of prominent Indian officials being stopped or frisked by U.S. officials.
In December 2010, the U.S. government expressed regret after India’s then-ambassador Meera Shankar was pulled out of an airport security line and frisked by a security agent.
In 2009, America’s Continental Airlines apologized to former Indian President APJ Abdul Kalam for frisking him before he boarded a flight to the U.S.
Members of India’s parliament were outraged after it was revealed that Kalam had been frisked and made to remove his shoes at Delhi airport in April.
Protocol specifically exempts former presidents and other dignitaries from such searches.