Telugu attorney disputes H-1B visa fraud allegations

Vijayawada: At a time when an H-1B visa has turned into sour fruit under the Donald Trump administration, with tighter rules including a proposed $100,000 fee for the visa, a recent video posted by a social media influencer alleged visa fraud in Texas. The controversial claims sent jitters across the Indian diaspora after the video went viral, following its sharing by former Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, who renewed her demand for entirely doing away with the H-1B programme.The entire controversy revolved around a Telugu attorney, Chand Parvataneni, as the social media influencer, who later retracted and deleted the video, alleged that Chand approved 700,000 H-1B visas in 2025 alone. The video was first posted by Kaylee Campbell on Instagram ID kayleeashlynn. She claimed that Chand approved 400,000 H-1B visa applicants and, in 2025, the number went up to 700,000. She further alleged that 66 applicants shared the same address of an apartment building.Kaylee's post went viral on social media, with several accounts, including Greene, reposting it. Flagging it as a major scam, Greene was vocal about scrapping the H-1B visa programme, and even introduced a bill, HR6937. Greene, known for her ‘America First' stance, further said that if Republicans are serious about stopping it, they would pass her bill to eliminate the visa programme.However, official records show that the numbers put out by Kaylee, which were later shared by many, did not add up as alleged. According to ‘myvisajobs.com', Chand is not among the top attorneys who filed the highest number of applications. The data shows that he is in third place as an individual attorney, while his firm is in 11th place with 3,327 applications.Speaking to TOI, Chand said the numbers put out by Kaylee are "skewed" and lack any legal basis. "The data available in public domain shows that I am not even the topmost attorney in the USA, both in law firm size and as a single attorney. The video is not only inaccurate but is a conspiracy to defame Indians," he said, adding that a small section of people are intentionally circulating the video even as Kaylee, the original creator, has deleted the video from her accounts and apologised to him.Chand also released a video in which he clarified that the H-1B visa programme is intended to supplement, not replace, American workers. "Most importantly, I do not approve visas as alleged in the video. All decisions pertaining to visas solely rest with USCIS and the Department of Labour. As an attorney, my role is limited to filing petitions for bona fide positions based on employer-provided documentation and strict legal attestations. Every filing is subject to rigorous govt vetting and FDNS scrutiny. I have no financial interest or ownership in the companies we represent and perform my duties strictly in accordance with law," Chand told TOI, adding that he did not have a single complaint against him in his 15-year career as an attorney.Before moving to the USA, Chand did his schooling in Visakhapatnam and Hyderabad. He is an alumnus of IIT Kharagpur.