RIYADH, 15 September 2005— The bank account of Dr. Ganesh Pande, an Indian doctor who has been under virtual house arrest for the last three years, has been frozen.
“I have faced many problems since my iqama expired about a year and a half ago,” Dr. Pande said. Because he has no iqama, he is unable to send money home nor can he move freely without fear of being questioned and detained at checkpoints.
“The owner of the building where I live is constantly bothering me to get out of the flat since he doesn’t want a tenant with an expired iqama,” he said, adding that the constant stress was telling on his health.
Dr. Pande, a specialist in internal medicine, has not been to India since October 2002. He has submitted his resignation six times to his sponsor, Mustawsaf Oleya Polyclinic Center in Riyadh where he worked for 17 years. “My resignation has not been accepted nor have I been paid what is due me.”
He said that in addition to the stress, the three years have been marked by personal tragedy. “During the last three years, I have lost my mother-in-law and my sister’s husband. I could not attend their funerals because my passport is in the custody of my sponsor.”
Dr. Pande said he had approached the Labor Court in October 2003. Eleven months later the court delivered its verdict in his favor. The verdict, however, fell short of what Dr. Pande felt was just and so his lawyer appealed to a higher court where the case has now been pending for the last 14 months.
“During this time my case has come up seven times. The sponsor has asked for more time on four occasions and on the other three, he did not appear. This is obviously a violation of the Labor Law and an example of serious failure in enforcing the law,” Dr. Pande said.
A number of Indians who are familiar with Dr. Pande’s case have wondered why the Indian Embassy does not intervene in what is the complete disregard for the rights of an Indian citizen.
