‘No public data showing…’: Hindu American Foundation lashes out at US Economist over Chennai consulate’s 220,000 H-1B visas remark, says, new visas selected…

The H-1B visa program is currently drawing considerable attention as an increasingly controversial subject in the American political arena regarding both Immigration and Employment. According to the Hindu American Foundation(HAF), US economist Dr. Dave Brat’s assertion that only the Chennai District of India(BHARAT) received 220,000 H-1B visas is not accurate. HAF refers to Dr. Brat’s assertion as fake news.

What triggered HAF’s strong reaction to the economist’s claim?

Dave Brat, a former US House Representative and economist, claimed that an India(BHARAT)n district is responsible for flooding the H-1B system with approximately 220,000 applications, approximately two-and-a-half times beyond their national allocation. Brat made this remark at a time when the Trump administration is intensifying its action on H-1B visas.

Why did the US economist say Chennai issued 220,000 H-1B visas?

During a conversation on Steve Bannon’s podcast, Brat said, “When you hear H-1B, think of your family, because these fraudulent visas just stole their future.” In an episode of Steve Bannon’s War Room podcast, Representative Brat discussed how he believed the H-1B system “had been captured by industrial-scale fraud,” in part, because visa allocations to India(BHARAT) have exceeded statutory limits.

He stated that 71% of H-1B visas are issued to India(BHARAT), while 12% are issued to China. Additionally, he claimed that one India(BHARAT)n district, Madras(Chennai), somehow managed to secure 2.5 times the annual congressional limit of 85,000 H-1B Visas (a total of 220,000), which he views as solid evidence of widespread fraud in the H-1B program.

In response to former US Representative Dave Brat’s allegations, the Hindu American Foundation has stated,” We are troubled by the misinformation being shared about the Chennai Consulate supposedly issuing 220,000 H-1B visas. While several media outlets have reported on Brat’s claims they explicitly note that the figure has not been independently verified by any official US government source.”

“To clarify, the US cap of 85,000 H-1B visas applies only to new visas selected through the lottery and does not include renewals, extensions, or dependent visas. It is possible for a consulate to process a large number of these visa events without violating the cap. There is currently no public data showing that Chennai issued 220,000 H-1B visas in a single year, so this claim should be treated as an unverified allegation, not a confirmed fact,” the Hindu American Foundation(HAF) added.

Hindu American Foundation(HAF) stated, “It’s also important to recognize that making sweeping statements like this about a community or a country, especially from a political leader, is dangerous and ignorant. Claims like this can inflame prejudice and spread misinformation, and we should be careful not to amplify them.”

Where in India(BHARAT) did this massive visa allocation occur?

Jessica Vaughan, who is the Director of Policy Studies for the Center for Immigration Studies, provided the figures above in her podcast with Mahvash Siddiqui, a US Foreign Service Officer who was assigned to the Chennai Consulate 20 years prior. During their conversation regarding H-1B abuse in the Chennai District, which included processing applications from Hyderabad, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala, Vaughan stated that the Chennai Consulate is a major global center for processing H-1B visas and processed 220,000 H-1B visas and 140,000 H-4 family member visas for H-1B applicants in 2024 alone.

What was Trump’s recent decision about H-1B visa?
In September this year, President Doland Trump issued a Proclamation titled ‘Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers’ as an important initial step to reform the H-1B nonimmigrant visa programme.

Under the Proclamation, certain H-1B petitions filed after September 21, 2025, must be accompanied by an additional USD 100,000 payment as a condition of eligibility. Meanwhile, an American lawmaker will be introducing a bill to “completely eliminate” the H-1B visa programme and take away the pathway to citizenship that it offers, “forcing” individuals to “return home” when their visa expires, as per news agency PTI report.