Deported hijacker may be returned to Canada

Two weeks ago, a private jet chartered by the Canadian government landed at New Delhi airport and was surrounded by an Indian police tactical team waiting to arrest the lone passenger, Parminder Singh Saini.
A former Sikh militant, Mr. Saini had hijacked an Indian airliner in 1984 before making his way to Toronto, where he lived for 15 years until he was deported by the Canada Border Services Agency on Jan. 26.
The deportation was "a victory for the rule of law, the integrity of our immigration system, and the safety and security of Canadians," two federal Cabinet ministers, Vic Toews and Jason Kenney, said in a press release.
But it's not over yet.
Mr. Saini's lawyers are now attempting to reopen his case, alleging that Canadian officials knew he would be arrested once he arrived in India but withheld those details from the courts.
The case goes before the Federal Court of Canada next week and if Mr. Saini is successful, the CBSA could be ordered to "un-deport" him -- to bring him back to Canada.
The appeal is based on a 2007 case involving a schizophrenic Jamaican with an extensive criminal record. The CBSA deported him but was forced to fly him back to Canada after a judge ruled that federal officials had inadvertently misled him. Last fall, the CBSA was similarly forced to return a former Toronto gang member to Toronto three years after he had been deported to Sri Lanka.
A CBSA spokeswoman declined to comment yesterday on whether Mr. Saini might be returned to Canada, saying the agency "does not comment on hypotheticals" but she said the government would defend its actions.
"Mr. Saini did not provide sufficient evidence to satisfy the court that any harm would come to him and the CBSA received no information to suggest otherwise," said Anna Pape.
10/02/10 Stewart Bell/National Post, Canada

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Categories: Air India Domestic Feb 2010, Foreign Feb 2010, NACIL Feb 2010, Safety Feb 2010