Latest news with #MuhammadAsifKarim
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- General
- Daily Mail
Pakistani drug dealer allowed to stay in Britain so he can 'talk to his son about Islam and culture'
A Pakistani drug dealer has dodged deportation after a judge said he played a key role in teaching his son about Islam and his culture. Muhammad Asif Karim, 43, amassed 21 offences after arriving on a visa to visit the UK in 1998 and never going home. He was jailed for four years for possessing heroin and cocaine with intent to supply but allowed to remain in Britain after becoming a prosecution witness in a murder trial. However, he was kicked out of a witness protection scheme when he continued to offend, and ten years ago he was ordered to be deported back to Pakistan. He only sees his son by a white British mother twice a month, an immigration tribunal heard. But a judge in Edinburgh has now ruled that he can remain in the UK after hearing from the boy on how his father taught him about 'religion', 'culture' and his 'life and upbringing in Pakistan'. In addition the boy's mother had said Karim 'could talk to his son about studying and job choices, he could teach him to shave and talk to him about things a mother could not'. The child was unaware of his father's criminal history. Last October a first-tier immigration judge allowed his human rights appeal against deportation under the controversial 'right to private and family life' under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights. Now an immigration appeals judge has rejected a Home Office bid to overturn the decision, saying deportation would be 'unduly harsh'. The judge said the boy spoke about how 'his dad is able to talk to him about Islam, about Pakistani culture and his own upbringing'. 'We do not think it controversial to suggest that such matters would have significance for this child, who is himself of Pakistani origin, but is being largely brought up by his white British mother,' he said. Judges felt they were matters 'fundamental to his identity.' They said that while there was 'a particularly strong public interest in removing someone who habitually committed crimes over a 14-year period', Karim hadn't offended for more than a decade. They also highlighted how Karim had suffered from 'significant and debilitating mental ill-health'. 'There was also evidence that he was himself a survivor of violence, trauma and criminality, all of which had played a role in his troubled youth,' they added. The case comes as ministers pledge to drive down immigration and tighten up the asylum system. New legislation is planned following a backlash against cases such as that of an Albanian criminal whose deportation was halted partly due to his son's aversion to the type of chicken nuggets served abroad. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper want to restrict the 'exceptional circumstances' in which judges can currently overrule the Home Office when foreign nationals - including criminals - lodge immigration appeals. In particular it would aim to 'limit successful claims' from foreign nationals who lodge appeals under Article 8. However critics say the long-awaited White Paper contains only vague pledges and question whether it will tackle abuse of the asylum system.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Pakistani drug dealer can stay in UK ‘to teach son about Islam'
A Pakistani drug dealer has been allowed to remain in the UK because of his role in talking to his son about Islam and his culture. The Home Office ordered the deportation of Muhammad Asif Karim, 43, after he amassed seven convictions for a total of 21 offences, including supplying the class A drugs heroin and cocaine, for which he served a four-year jail sentence. He won his appeal against his removal after arguing that it would breach his rights to a family life under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). An upper tribunal accepted it would be 'unduly harsh' on his son if he was to be deported to Pakistan, even though his child was being 'largely brought up by his white British mother'. The son gave evidence to the immigration court that his father 'is able to talk to him about Islam, about Pakistani culture and his own upbringing'. The case, disclosed in court papers, is the latest example uncovered by The Telegraph in which illegal migrants or convicted foreign criminals have been able to remain in the UK or halt their deportations on human rights grounds. Yvette Cooper, the Home Secretary, has announced plans to curb judges' powers to block deportations with new legally enforced 'common sense' rules to clarify how judges interpret Article 8 of the ECHR, and to strengthen the public interest test. Karim came to the UK on a visitor's visa in 1988 at the age of seven and never went home. After his prison sentence for drug dealing, he avoided deportation by becoming a witness in a murder trial. However, he was thrown off a witness protection programme after continuing to offend. Even though the Home Office issued the deportation order against him in 2015, it was not until 2023 that his appeal against his removal was considered by a first-tier tribunal. It backed his claim on Article 8 grounds, but the Home Office appealed against that decision. The upper tribunal heard that he had avoided criminality for a decade, enjoyed a 'parental relationship' with his son and had lived in the UK for 26 years, amounting to most of his life. After being told about his talks with his son, the tribunal accepted that these were 'matters fundamental' to the boy's identity. The Home Office argued that this was 'conjecture', with no independent corroboration from a social worker or psychologist. The upper tribunal was 'satisfied' that the lower court was entitled to 'place weight' on the boy's evidence. 'We do not think it controversial to suggest that such matters would have significance for this child, who is himself of Pakistani origin, but is being largely brought up by his white British mother,' it said. The tribunal also noted that the boy's mother felt that Karim had a 'positive impact' on the child. It said he 'could talk to his son about studying and job choices, he could teach him to shave and talk to him about things a mother could not'. It therefore accepted that it would be 'unduly harsh' to deport Karim, and rejected the Home Office appeal. 'Although there is a particularly strong public interest in removing someone who habitually committed crimes over a 14-year period, his last offence was committed over 10 years ago and he has complied with all probation and rehabilitation requirements, as well as the reporting conditions imposed on him by the Home Office,' it said. 'He has throughout the relevant period suffered from significant and debilitating mental ill-health, and although this was not a factor that the first-tier tribunal thought significant, it is right to note that there has been an inordinate delay – over 10 years – on the part of the Secretary of State in effecting this deportation. 'There was also evidence that he was himself a survivor of violence, trauma and criminality, all of which had played a role in his troubled youth.' Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Telegraph
3 days ago
- General
- Telegraph
Pakistani drug dealer can stay in UK ‘to teach son about Islam'
A Pakistani drug dealer has been allowed to remain in the UK because of his role in talking to his son about Islam and his culture. The Home Office ordered the deportation of Muhammad Asif Karim, 43, after he amassed seven convictions for a total of 21 offences, including supplying the class A drugs heroin and cocaine, for which he served a four-year jail sentence. He won his appeal against his removal after arguing that it would breach his rights to a family life under article eight of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). An upper tribunal accepted it would be 'unduly harsh' on his son if he was to be deported to Pakistan, even though his child was being 'largely brought up by his white British mother'. The son gave evidence to the immigration court that his father 'is able to talk to him about Islam, about Pakistani culture and his own upbringing'. The case, disclosed in court papers, is the latest example uncovered by The Telegraph in which illegal migrants or convicted foreign criminals have been able to remain in the UK or halt their deportations on human rights grounds. Yvette Cooper, the Home Secretary, has announced plans to curb judges' powers to block deportations with new legally enforced 'common sense' rules to clarify how judges interpret article eight of the ECHR, and to strengthen the public interest test. Karim came to the UK on a visitor's visa in 1988 at the age of seven and never went home. After his prison sentence for drug dealing, he avoided deportation by becoming a witness in a murder trial. However, he was thrown off a witness protection programme after continuing to offend. Even though the Home Office issued the deportation order against him in 2015, it was not until 2023 that his appeal against his removal was considered by a first-tier tribunal. It backed his claim on article eight grounds but the Home Office appealed against that decision. The upper tribunal heard that he had avoided criminality for a decade, enjoyed a 'parental relationship' with his son and had lived in the UK for 26 years, amounting to most of his life. After being told about his talks with his son, the tribunal accepted that these were 'matters fundamental' to the boy's identity. The Home Office argued that this was 'conjecture', with no independent corroboration from a social worker or psychologist. The upper tribunal was 'satisfied' that the lower court was entitled to 'place weight' on the boy's evidence. 'We do not think it controversial to suggest that such matters would have significance for this child, who is himself of Pakistani origin, but is being largely brought up by his white British mother,' it said. The tribunal also noted that the boy's mother felt that Karim had a 'positive impact' on the child. It said he 'could talk to his son about studying and job choices, he could teach him to shave and talk to him about things a mother could not'. 'Unduly harsh' to deport It therefore accepted that it would be 'unduly harsh' to deport Karim, and rejected the Home Office appeal. 'Although there is a particularly strong public interest in removing someone who habitually committed crimes over a 14-year period, his last offence was committed over 10 years ago and he has complied with all probation and rehabilitation requirements, as well as the reporting conditions imposed on him by the Home Office,' it said. 'He has throughout the relevant period suffered from significant and debilitating mental ill-health, and although this was not a factor that the first-tier tribunal thought significant, it is right to note that there has been an inordinate delay – over 10 years –- on the part of the Secretary of State in effecting this deportation. 'There was also evidence that he was himself a survivor of violence, trauma and criminality, all of which had played a role in his troubled youth.'
