Court: Gurkhas can stay in Britain

LONDON, Oct. 1 (UPI) -- Britain's High Court ruled Tuesday that five Nepalese veterans of the British army and a soldier's widow have the right to live in the country.

A judge said denying the six British visas was "irrational and unlawful," The Guardian reported. They had been rejected on the grounds that they did not have ties to Britain and because they had retired before 1997.

The Home Office must pay 80 percent of the group's legal expenses, the judge said. He ordered a review of the policies that led to the court case.

The Gurkhas were Nepalese soldiers who continued to serve in the British Army after India won independence in 1947.

Outside the court, a bagpiper played while hundreds of Gurkhas cheered. Some chanted "Ayo Gurkhali," the Gurkha cry that means "Forward Gurkhas."

Joanna Lumley, best known for her starring role in the TV show "Absolutely Fabulous," joined the celebration. Lumley, whose father was an officer with the Gurkhas, said the ruling gives Britain a "chance to right great wrongs and wipe out a national stain."