Pamma’s wife presses for his deportation to UK

Sunday, 24/01/2016

http://paper.hindustantimes.com/epaper/viewer.aspx

PATIALA: In a bid to build up international pressure on India that is seeking fugitive Khalistan terrorist Paramjit Singh Pamma’s extradition from Portugal, his wife Pinky Marwa, UK’s permanent resident, has send a petition to the European Parliament (EP) seeking his deportation to England.

Pinky, in her plea filed on January 22, claimed that Pamma’s detention has violated European Union (EU)’s refugee laws and pressed for his release.

She has also approached UN Human Rights Council in Geneva through UK and US-based Sikh bodies, demanding immediate release of Pamma’s on humanitarian grounds. While UN is not likely to intervene in the matter, Pinky’s petition is likely to be heard by EP’s petition committee by end of this month or in the beginning of February.

Siôn Simon, who is a British Labour Party politician and also a member of the European Parliament for the West Midlands, too, has submitted a written question to European Parliament (copy with HT) asking its vice president/high representatives to intervene in Pamma’s return to the UK. Simon has also asked EU to take up the matter with the Indian government.

PLEA CITES TFEU, DUBLIN REGULATIONS
Pamma was detained in Portugal on December 18, 2015, after which Indian authorities and the Punjab government began process to extradite him on grounds that he is wanted in murder and bomb blast cases in Patiala. Pinky has filed petition under article 227 of “Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union” (TFEU). The plea states that the TFEU and Dublin Regulations duly ratified by all EU member countries recognise asylum/refugee status granted by any EU member country to a third country national and extend him the protection from refoulement to the country of persecution.

In Pamma’s case, she mentioned that his asylum/refugee status has been properly granted by an the United Kingdom (EU member) and should be recognised by Portugal. Any request for his extradition to India should be denied as it amounts to “refoulement” to a country where he will be persecuted.

“Portugal as a signatory to the 1951 Refugee Convention and member of the EU should not detain and extradite Pamma who has been granted asylum/ refugee status by another member state (UK), she further added. She urged the European Parliament to ask the Portugal government to immediately release Pamma, deny the extradition request from India and immediately allow him to return to the UK

The petition has been signed by European and North American Sikh NGOs, including “Federation of Sikh Organisations” (FSO), Sikh Council and Kesari Lehar from UK, Mar-Movement from Switzerland and North Americanbased rights group “Sikhs For Justice” (SFJ).