London Labour Councillor Fined £40,000 for Illegally Employing Indian Student as Nanny

Hina Mir, a councillor, had hired a 22-year-old Indian student as a nanny. (Representational)

A Labour Party politician from west London has been ordered to pay a fine of 40,000 pounds after her appeal against an immigration law violation was rejected. The case involves her illegal employment of an Indian student as a nanny.

According to a report in 'The Daily Telegraph', Hina Mir, who serves as a councillor and is a qualified solicitor, employed 22-year-old Himanshi Gongley and paid her 1,200 pounds in cash monthly, despite the student not having legal work authorization in the UK.

The City of London County Court heard that the 45-year-old former deputy mayor of Hounslow had the Indian student available "24 hours a day for six days a week" to care for her two children.

Judge Stephen Hellman stated during proceedings: "Councillor Mir is a person of exemplary character. She is a solicitor, a councillor and is involved in the community. But the inconsistencies in the appellant's evidence mean I cannot place much reliance on her evidence as I normally would."

The newspaper reported that Mir gave the student the nickname Ria and claimed she was merely a "social visitor" who came to her home to "play video games, to watch TV and to chill" and to help with household tasks.

However, the UK Home Office informed the court that the student appeared distressed when she "flagged down a police car for help" in August last year. Authorities discovered she had been staying in the country illegally since her visa expired in March 2023. The student told officials that she was "physically abused" and felt "suicidal".

Arif Rehman, representing the councillor, argued in court: "This story was fabricated with an intention to claim immigration advantage and to present herself as a victim of modern-day slavery. Nothing was done with the allegations with the evidence of abuse because there was no evidence. This is not someone who can be trusted by the court."

Despite this defense, the judge said he found it "unlikely" that the student would have "concocted the quite detailed evidence she gave at short notice after she had been arrested by the police".

Following her unsuccessful appeal against the immigration ruling from January, Mir must now pay the 40,000 pounds fine plus an additional 3,620 pounds in court costs.

Meanwhile, Opposition representatives from Hounslow Council are now calling for her resignation from her councillor position.

"This is a serious breach of the law, and residents rightly deserve a lot better," Conservative Party councillor Jack Emsley told the newspaper.