NRI PULSE STAFF REPORT
New Brunswick, NJ, November 13, 2025: An Indian tech worker has filed a federal lawsuit against a New Jersey–based IT company and its Indian-origin chief executive, alleging forced labor, wage theft, and caste-based discrimination under the H-1B visa program. The case, reported widely in Indian and U.S. media, has drawn attention to longstanding concerns about worker vulnerability within America’s skilled-worker visa system.
According to the lawsuit, Amrutesh Vallabhaneni, who first arrived in the United States in 2015 on a student visa, joined Siri Software Solutions (also known as SiriSoft) in 2018 after the firm promised to sponsor his H-1B petition and support his path to permanent residency. Vallabhaneni alleges that once employed, the company and CEO Pavan Tata subjected him to exploitative conditions, including requiring him to “pay his own salary” for several months and withholding wages owed under federal visa regulations.
The complaint claims Vallabhaneni was pressured into accepting these terms under threat that his visa would be withdrawn — a move that would force him to leave the country. Public reports also state that he experienced lapses in health insurance and financial hardship, and that both he and his wife struggled to access medical care after he suffered a serious leg injury.
A central allegation in the lawsuit is that Tata imported caste-based workplace hierarchies into the U.S. work environment. Vallabhaneni says this contributed to discriminatory treatment and further weakened his position as an employee whose legal status depended on his employer’s sponsorship.
Media outlets reporting on the case quoted the lawsuit comparing the situation to a “Squid Game” for Indian workers — a high-stakes environment in which remaining in the United States becomes the reward, and employees feel unable to challenge employers for fear of retaliation or deportation.
The firm has not publicly responded to the allegations.
