“Mustang, Lamborghini, a free education and secure future for kids, a country with good law and order… Aise suhaane sapne dikhaye mujhe (I was shown such wonderful dreams),” recalls Vikash Sharma, an Indian migrant who never found the good life he was promised in New Zealand.
Instead, he ended up consulting a doctor for depression after a “traumatic year” in New Zealand, before eventually returning to India.
Exhausted, disheartened, and unfamiliar with local laws, Sharma did not initially file a complaint against the employer who allegedly made him suffer. But the doctor he turned to for help became his unexpected saviour. Not only did she support him through his mental health struggles, but she also helped him lodge a formal complaint, citing migrant exploitation.
The result: On 17 June 2025, after a legal battle that lasted nearly a year, the New Zealand Employment Relations Authority (ERA) ruled in Sharma’s favour, ordering Chauhan NZ Limited (CNZ) to pay him over NZ$99,000.
According to the ERA determination, Chauhan NZ Limited must pay Mr Sharma:
(a) Compensation of $25,000
(b) Lost remuneration of $11,567.40
(c) Unlawful deductions of $2,506.25
(d) Illegal employment premium of $60,042
This amount includes compensation, unpaid wages, and recovery of illegal premiums.
“The respondents failed to lodge a statement in reply and did not engage throughout the investigation process,” the ERA mentioned in the determination issues on 17 June, 2025.
Speaking by phone from a family-run garment shop in the bylanes of Satwari district in northern India’s Jammu, Sharma says he has become “forgetful” and is still emotionally scarred by the experience.
It all began when he landed in New Zealand on 26 September 2023 on an Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV), after being recruited by CNZ, operated by Mitu Sharma and Ankur Chauhan.
“I met Mitu Sharma in January 2023 through a relative,” he recalled.
“She said her company needed workers who could handle billing and chefing at her tiffin service, Candy’s Kitchen, in Christchurch.”
According to Sharma, Mitu offered a full immigration package—including a work visa, flights, accommodation, and a pathway to residency for his entire family—in exchange for money.
He claims he paid 20 lakh INR for himself and an additional 10 lakh INR to bring his wife and two children to New Zealand. He was told they could join him within two to three months.
“I used to watch videos on YouTube about how people get scammed. Never imagined the same would happen to me,” he said with a nervous laugh.
For the first instalment, he says he borrowed 5 lakh INR from friends and family and took an additional 5 lakh INR bank loan to fund the payment. Still unsure of his exact job role, he paid Mitu and asked her to proceed with the process.
When he landed in Christchurch—with a ticket he says he paid for himself, despite earlier assurances—it was Mitu Sharma and Ankur Chauhan who received him at the airport with a “fancy car,” he recalls.
“I was advised to visit my sister in Wellington for a week since I’d soon be too busy to take leave. I obliged,” Sharma said.
But days turned into weeks. One month passed with no work updates. Though his sister warned him to stay alert, Sharma didn’t suspect anything.
“I called them after 15 days. They said they still needed the remaining payment to finalise my enrolment,” he said.
He claims to have paid another 3 lakh INR and NZ$1,000 in cash.
Sharma began working on 24 October 2023—nearly 10 months after first contacting Mitu. But the guaranteed promised hour based work week never materialised.
“At first, I worked and was paid for 24 hours a week. Then they reduced it to 18, then 16, and eventually 14 hours,” he said.
According to the ERA investigation, on 14 December 2023, CNZ stopped rostering him altogether and removed him from the staff WhatsApp group.
On 17 December, Mitu Sharma and Ankur Chauhan told him there was no work due to business losses and encouraged him to find another job—even though his visa tied him legally to CNZ.
On 28 December, he received a message from Mitu Sharma formally terminating his employment and accusing him of being uncooperative and absent—claims he denies.
Amid the chaos, Sharma says his mental health took a severe hit.
“My roommates told me I used to yell and run out onto the roads at night,” he said.
Eventually, a roommate took him to a general practitioner in Christchurch.
“The doctor was shocked to see my condition,” Sharma said.
With a translator and his roommate present, he recounted his ordeal to the GP.
“The doctor had tears in her eyes after hearing my story,” he recalled.
“She made a phone call to someone, and two days later, I received a call from the police.”
Unfamiliar with local laws and barely surviving, Sharma says the GP visit was a blessing in disguise.
“The translator and the doctor kept checking on me afterward and made sure I was doing okay,” he said.
“I still don’t know who she called, but an NGO helped me with food and finances soon after.”
He says he repeatedly asked for his money to be returned and told the owners he would go back to India. However, they allegedly told him they would pay him after he returned—once they had sold one of their cafés.
Unable to sustain himself in Christchurch, Sharma moved to Wellington to live with his sister and brother-in-law.
With their support, he hired a lawyer and raised a personal grievance with the ERA on 20 February 2024.
After filing the case, Sharma said he received a call from Mitu Sharma.
“She told me, ‘I’ll make sure you don’t even get $10. I’m a New Zealand citizen—the government will rule in my favour,’” he claimed.
On 6 March 2024, Immigration New Zealand granted Sharma a Migrant Exploitation Protection Work Visa, later extended by six months.
“I applied to so many places for work, but all of them were scared to hire me. Once you get an exploitation visa, you’re viewed as a criminal. Nobody wants to hire you,” he said.
Unable to secure work, he returned to India in September 2024—roughly 20 months after the ordeal began.
On 25 March 2025, the ERA held an investigation meeting. The respondents failed to appear.
On 17 June 2025, the Authority ruled in Sharma’s favour, finding: He was unjustifiably dismissed, CNZ made unlawful wage deductions, CNZ charged illegal employment premiums.
He was awarded over NZ$99,000 in compensation and lost wages.
However, Sharma says he still has not received any payments due.
“If the party ordered to pay compensation fails to do so, the awarded party in this case may apply to the Authority for a certificate of determination. They can use this to apply to the District Court to enforce the compensation awarded,” Daniel de Villiers, Director, Regulatory and Advisory Services told The Indian Weekender.
Now back in Jammu, Sharma says he has yet to receive any money.
“I need to repay my lenders. I need to pay my daughters’ school fees. I have a mother to look after,” he said.
Still, after everything, he holds on to hope.
“Swarg hai (It’s heaven)... I would love to return to New Zealand… if there’s an opportunity. But what would I do there now?” he asks, his voice trailing into uncertainty.
ISSUE
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