Atul was on a work visa, and Neisha was on the spouse-dependent visa which was due to expire in August 2018.
They had applied for visitor visa after Atul’s death. Now, the life is in a perilous state for the daughter-mum duo as their visa is about to expire.
Neisha’s daughter is studying in year nine.
“I cannot go back to my home country. I have no family there to support. Essentially, I have nowhere to go,” Ms Tandon told The Indian Weekender.
Life had not been easy for Neisha. According to a fund-raising appeal posted by Ms Bhavna Kaul, this was Neisha’ second marriage. “Neisha is from India and was first married in 2004 when she was 23 into a family who was dowry seekers. She then gave birth to a beautiful baby girl, but her husband and in-laws did not want a girl child. Neisha very bravely walked out of her marriage with her 6-month-old daughter and decided to bring her up as a single mother,” the fund-raising appeal reads.
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Atul and Neisha got married in 2012, and in 2014 they moved to New Zealand in the hope for a better life. That hope was crushed by Atul’s death.
Now, Neisha cannot work. She has lodged a visa application. She has also approached Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern among other authorities. However, the prospects look bleak at this moment.
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The community is raising funds to help Neisha and her daughter. “The funds will be spent on getting Neisha a place to stay and living costs for Neisha and her daughter. Any additional funds will be used to help Neisha study and gain a New Zealand qualification and also for her daughter's schooling,” the appeal says.
