HARLINGEN, Texas, May 7, 2026, 14:05 (CDT)
- Meenu Batra, a Texas court interpreter and mother of four, says she’s still worried ICE might detain her again—this after spending more than six weeks in custody.
- A federal judge last week ordered her release, saying the government hadn’t provided a clear justification for keeping her in custody.
- The legal wrangling continues. DHS maintains she faces a final removal order, but her attorneys are pressing a case linked to her son’s U.S. Army service.
Meenu Batra, 53, a court interpreter from Texas who spent 45 days in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody, says she’s still worried about the possibility of being picked up by federal agents again. “No one is safe,” Batra told CBS News in her first interview since her release, though she added she believes her paperwork supports her right to stay in the country. CBS News
This case stands out because Batra isn’t new to the U.S. She was born in India but has spent roughly 35 years living here, working as a court interpreter in Hindi, Punjabi, and Urdu. Her release came only after a federal judge pointed out she’d been held with “no discernible reason.” ABC News
Batra’s case is now highlighting just how much immigration authorities can intervene in the lives of people with work permits but outstanding removal orders. The Department of Homeland Security stands by the decision, saying she was picked up March 17 in a “targeted enforcement operation” and has been under a final removal order since 2000. ABC News
Batra was taken into custody at Valley International Airport in Harlingen as she was heading to Milwaukee on a business trip, winding up at the El Valle Detention Facility in Raymondville, not far from the U.S.-Mexico border. In an interview with CBS, she recalled agents accusing her of being in the country illegally; she responded that she had her papers with her.
U.S. District Judge Rolando Olvera on April 30 ordered her released, citing a lack of basic process before detention. According to ABC News, Olvera noted the government hadn’t provided a reason for holding her after 25 years, and issued an order blocking the administration from detaining her again without advance notice and an opportunity to respond.
Batra has what’s called “withholding of removal”—a type of relief that blocks deportation when someone risks persecution at home. The status lets her stay and work in the U.S., but it’s more limited than asylum and doesn’t open up a route to citizenship on its own. Ndtv
Batra left India as a teenager after losing her parents—both Sikhs—to anti-Sikh violence, according to CBS. Now, her son Jasper has enlisted in the U.S. Army, and her attorneys are leveraging that connection to push for a safer immigration status.
Deepak Ahluwalia, Batra’s lawyer, made it clear that her release isn’t the conclusion of the matter. “The fight is not over,” he emphasized, saying the legal team will push back if there’s any move to relocate Batra to a country where she has no connections. American Translators Association (ATA)
The government hasn’t let up: according to the Texas Observer, officials moved quickly to ask the court to rethink Olvera’s order. CBS, meanwhile, noted Batra’s habeas petition is still unresolved, arguing his detention wasn’t legal.
DHS is sticking to its stance. The department, in comments carried by CBS and ABC, labeled Batra an “illegal alien,” noted she faces a final removal order, and took a swipe at the judge responsible for her release. Batra, for her part, called DHS’s remarks disrespectful to the judiciary. CBS News
Language-access groups aren’t staying on the sidelines. The American Translators Association called Batra a master-licensed judicial interpreter and flagged her detention as troubling for courts that depend on professional interpreters for non-English speakers.
Batra’s family lives with the legal uncertainty every day. Speaking to CBS, she said her daughter keeps watch on cars outside at night, anxious that someone could show up to take her mother once more.
