“I was very much asked to withdraw."
A Scottish Green Party member has claimed she was asked to stand down as a candidate because of her student visa status, despite another candidate in similar circumstances being allowed to stand.
Sai Shraddha Suresh Viswanathan said she was left “very distraught” after party officials allegedly raised concerns about whether she could remain in Scotland for the full parliamentary term.
The current president of the National Union of Students Scotland, who is originally from India, had applied to stand for the Scottish Greens in the North East of Scotland during the 2026 Holyrood election.
Viswanathan took part in the party’s internal selection process last year and was ranked third on the regional list. However, she said a phone call with a party official in July 2025 changed her position within the race.
According to Viswanathan, she was advised that legal guidance suggested she would not be able to take up a position as an MSP because she could not guarantee the right to remain in Scotland throughout a full parliamentary term.
Her concerns emerged after fellow Scottish Green candidate Q Manivannan, who was also on a student visa, was permitted to stand and was later elected as an MSP for the Edinburgh and Lothians East region.
Viswanathan said she was pleased to see Greens elected to Holyrood, but claimed her own experience had a lasting personal impact.
In response to the party stating that no candidates were blocked from standing due to visa status, Viswanathan said:
“I was very much asked to withdraw. I was asked to step away from this race. Maybe I was nicely asked, but I was still asked to withdraw.
“I was informed that I would be disqualified… and that’s something I very clearly remember from the phone call because I was very distraught.”
She added that she felt “let down” by the Scottish Greens’ internal selection process:
“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.”
Changes introduced to Scottish election law in 2024 allowed people without permanent leave to remain in the UK to stand in Scottish Parliament elections.
However, MSPs can be disqualified if they lose the legal right to stay in the UK while serving in office.
The Scottish Greens secured one MSP in the North East region, meaning Viswanathan would not have been elected even if she had remained on the party’s list.
The dispute adds to wider tensions within the party in the North East of Scotland, where there was reported infighting around candidate selections.
The Scottish Greens have since pledged to support Manivannan as they apply for a graduate visa to remain in Scotland.
A Scottish Green Party spokesperson said: “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.”
Overall, the Scottish Greens had 15 MSPs elected to Holyrood.
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