A US federal Judge has declined a request by 169 Indian H-1B visa holders to suspend the June 22 proclamation by US President Donald Trump barring foreigners on H-1B and other work visas from moving to the US through the end of 2020.
The order by Judge Amit P. Mehta noted that the plaintiffs were unlikely to succeed in challenging the visa ban, adding that suspending it would not be in public interest.
While the plaintiffs argued that the proclamation was “arbitrary and capricious”, demanding the government process their visa applications, Mehta said this would be an “exercise in futility” as even if their applications are processed, they are unlikely to secure an end to entry bars.
"Such an order would risk diverting limited resources away from visa applicants who are eligible under an exception to the proclamation, and could create substantial confusion for visa recipients attempting to enter the country only to be denied at ports of entry," he wrote.
The plaintiffs have since announced that they will appeal the ruling to the D.C. Circuit.
In 2019, Mehta had ruled against Trump’s efforts to block House Democrats from accessing his financial records., upholding a subpoena from the House Oversight and Reform Committee to the accounting firm representing the president.
