Court grants bail to 67 Indian ‘illegal workers’ at Salima Sugar Company

A resident magistrate’s court in Lilongwe has granted bail to 76 Indian Salima Sugar Company illegal workers just hours after arresting other illegal foreign workers in the country.

Lilongwe resident magistrate Shyreen Chirwa ordered the 67 Indian nationals to pay K100, 000 each as bail bond and K500,000 non cash surety bond.

Salima Sugar Company spokesperson Maganizo Mazeze said the company, which has 60 per cent shares by an Indian firm and 40 per cent by the government, will comply with the order.

Meanwhile, diplomatic dialogue between Lilongwe and Delhi are continuing in Lilongwe on the matter behind the scenes.

The foreign workers were arrested by Immigration authorities on allegations that they did not have working permits.

Defense lawyer Joseph Chiumia accused the government of double standards, saying the same government invited the Indian workers, saying it even chartered a plane for them because commercial flights were grounded due to the Covid-19 pandemic but now the same government was deporting them.

But state lawyer Binwell Kachingwe said the fact that the suspects did not have work permits is proof enough that they were illegally working in the country.

However, the state maintained that it is a normal practice to have foreigners work without work permits while the permits are being processed.

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