Former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif
News Time
According to Pakistani lawyers who specialize in immigration law in the UK, Nawaz Sharif can stay legally in the UK even if the Pakistani government cancels his passport or does not issue a new one. According to experts, as long as Nawaz Sharif has a British visa and does not want to travel to another country, he does not need a passport. Pakistan’s Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid has announced that he will cancel the passport of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on February 16, 2021. After Sheikh Rashid’s statement, Parliamentary Affairs Adviser Babar Awan tweeted that if Nawaz Sharif’s passport expired, it would be illegal for him to stay in the UK. If the passport expires, Nawaz Sharif will come to Pakistan and ask for a travel document, then he will have a chance to show bravery. Nawaz Sharif has only one way to come to Pakistan and face the cases.
When contacted by Pakistani lawyers who are experts in British law, senior lawyer Muhammad Sohail Babar said that the first thing is that the cancellation of Nawaz Sharif’s passport will not be legally possible for the current government. It will be detrimental to the government. Yes, it is possible that the government will not issue a new passport if their passport is expired. He said that not issuing a new passport would also go against the government of Pakistan as the Pakistani government has requested the UK to deport Nawaz Sharif.
Under British immigration law, they do not deport a person on such a request unless they have a travel document, ie a passport. Senior lawyer Muhammad Sohail Babar said that now either the government does not want Nawaz Sharif to be deported or he is not aware of the legal disadvantages of revoking his passport. He said that even after the passport expired, as long as Nawaz Sharif has a British visa, his stay is legal. More than that, the government should first find out whether Nawaz Sharif has an ILR (Indefinite Leave to Remain). Muhammad Sohail Babar said that the ILR means that Nawaz Sharif can stay in the UK for 10 years without a visa and can extend it after one year. In addition, even if their visa expires, the British government can use its discretion to issue a six- to 12-month visa based on the Corona epidemic, but only once.
The senior lawyer said that no convicted person is granted political asylum in the UK so it would be difficult for Nawaz Sharif to apply for political asylum. He said that if he applied for it, he would have to give an interview in which he would have to satisfy the British Home Office. According to him, if the Home Department is not satisfied, then they will have to stay in the detention center from where they can apply for bail as well as appeal, but this situation will be a source of embarrassment for Nawaz Sharif. He said that Nawaz Sharif has been the Prime Minister of the country three times and he must have completed the consultation on all these legal matters. It is also possible that the British government will grant them political asylum using its prerogatives without putting them to any test. Senior lawyer Muhammad Sohail Babar says this is a move that is taken outside of immigration laws in certain circumstances. Many of my acquaintances have benefited from it.
Aqeel Hussain Kayani, another Pakistani lawyer based in the UK, said the passport was a travel document. If the visa expires and the visa does not expire, then Nawaz Sharif can stay in the UK without any hassle. They will not need a passport unless they plan to travel to a country outside the UK. He said that if Nawaz Sharif had a diplomatic visa, its validity could be a few more years. It is also possible that they have a very old visa on their passport that is about to expire. According to Advocate Aqeel Hussain Kayani, if Nawaz Sharif has applied for BRP visa, it will have time to expire as these visa cards have been made some time ago. In response to the question that if Nawaz Sharif’s visa expires, what is the way for him to stay in the UK? On this, Aqeel Hussain Kayani said that after that he has the option of political asylum. Even if the British government decides to deport Nawaz Sharif, which is (unexpected), Nawaz Sharif still has the option to appeal in two courts. It may take so long for the current government to come to an end and the new government to issue them a passport on which they can easily apply for a visa. According to him, the Pakistani government is thinking of deporting Nawaz Sharif by revoking his passport even though it has to revoke his identity card, which may not be legally possible and the courts may rule against any such decision. Advocate Aqeel Hussain Kayani says that even if the government does so, Nawaz Sharif will get legal protection in the UK under the UN conventions because the UK abides by the UN conventions in its true spirit. According to immigration experts, Nawaz Sharif’s children, who are British citizens, cannot help them legally, but they may need a guarantor during the asylum process and they can become their guarantor.
