"She confirmed she was paid £1,200 a month."
A Labour councillor has been fined £40,000 after hiring an illegal immigrant to work as a live-in nanny at her West London home.
Hina Mir hired Indian national Himanshi Gongley to care for her two children in Feltham, despite her not having legal residency or the right to work in the UK.
The arrangement continued until August 2024.
The former Hounslow deputy mayor kept the 22-year-old “on call 24 hours a day for six days a week”, the court heard. Prosecutors said she carried out childcare and household duties while being paid in cash.
Mir maintained the young woman was only a “social visitor” at her home who came “to play video games, to watch TV and to chill”. The court rejected that account and found she was working.
The case surfaced after Ms Gongley “flagged down a police car for help” on August 28, 2024, Amelia Williams for the Home Office said. Officers later established she was in the country illegally.
Ms Gongley entered the UK in 2021 on a student visa. Her leave expired in March 2023, making her an overstayer.
Mir, a qualified solicitor, was convicted in January of “hiring an illegal immigrant”. After losing an appeal at the City of London county court, she was ordered to pay £40,000 and £3,620 in court costs.
In interviews with immigration authorities, Ms Gongley said she had been “physically abused” and had felt “suicidal”.
Adam Goodchild, an immigration officer, told the court:
“She was aware her leave had expired and that is why she was not attending university.
“She told me immediately that she was in the country illegally and that her leave status had been curtailed and expired.
“She confirmed she was paid £1,200 a month. She said £400 goes to her employer for her rent and the rest goes on food. She claimed she was being paid cash in hand.”
Arif Rehman, representing the councillor, told the 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.”
Judge Stephen Hellman dismissed the appeal and said Ms Gongley’s evidence was more credible:
“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.
“I fall back on my gut instinct. My educated reflection on the facts is that Ms Ria was probably telling the truth.
“I find it unlikely she would have concocted the quite detailed evidence she gave at short notice after she had been arrested by the police.”
The ruling has triggered political fallout in west London, with Conservatives demanding Mir’s removal.
Jack Emsley, a Tory councillor, said: “It is clear that Councillor Mir’s positions as both the chair of the housing scrutiny panel and as a councillor are untenable.
“This is a serious breach of the law, and residents rightly deserve a lot better.
“I am shocked that the local Labour Party continue to stand by her not just as a councillor, but as a Labour candidate in next year’s elections.
“If Councillor Mir won’t resign, the Labour Party need to do the right thing and sack her.”
Ron Mushiso, another west London Tory councillor, said: “The Prime Minister has stood on a platform stating he would smash the gangs.
“That should include those who seem to be gaming our immigration system by employing people illegally for their own ends.
“The fact that it is a serving councillor who is at the heart of this case, makes it even more extraordinary. She is complicit in the problems of tackling illegal immigration in this country.
“It is up to Labour to decide if she should step down as a councillor.”
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