A MEMBER of the Scottish Greens has claimed she was asked to stand down as a candidate because of her student visa status.
It comes despite another candidate – Q Manivannan – running on a student visa and subsequently being elected in the recent Holyrood election.
Sai Shraddha Suresh Viswanathan told the BBC that she was "let down" by the party, alleging that she was asked to withdraw after officials became concerned that she couldn't serve the full term without a new visa.
The Scottish Greens, meanwhile, refuted that any candidates were blocked due to their visa status.
Viswanathan, who is originally from India and is the current president of the National Union of Students (NUS) in Scotland, applied to be a candidate for the party in the North East of Scotland.
She was ranked third on the party's list but claimed she was asked during a phone call with a party official in July last year to withdraw as a candidate.
In a statement, Viswanathan said: "Ultimately, there has been a discrepancy in how different candidates have been advised by the party.
"Immigration is a sensitive subject for many migrants like myself who should be allowed to take part in the election process, as the latest election results have shown us."
The North East of Scotland wasn't without its controversies during the election, with a separate feud between MSP Maggie Chapman and former member Guy Ingerson centring on the top spot.
A Scottish Green Party spokesperson told the BBC: "Candidates are responsible for ensuring they meet all legal and eligibility requirements before standing for election, including any matters relating to their own visa status.
"We cannot comment on individual candidates or internal selection processes, but we can confirm that nobody has been blocked from standing for the Scottish Greens because of their visa status.
"Overall, the party is satisfied that it has acted appropriately and provided relevant guidance to all candidates, where required.
"The Scottish Greens are proud to see our biggest ever cohort of MSPs elected, who represent a diverse range of communities including New Scots, and we look forward to getting to work delivering the progressive platform on which they were elected."
