A key figure in the grooming gangs scandal in the United Kingdom cannot be deported back to Pakistan despite losing his British citizenship, sparking public anger and calls for legislative change.
| PULSE POINTS |
❓ WHAT HAPPENED: A Pakistani grooming gang ringleader in the United Kingdom cannot be deported from the country despite losing his British citizenship. 📰 DETAIL: Shabir Ahmed is a key figure in the Rochdale grooming gang, one of the most infamous cases in the broader grooming gang scandal in the United Kingdom. The scandal revolves around mostly Pakistani Muslim men preying on white working-class girls across the United Kingdom. The 73-year-old Ahmed was convicted of 30 child rape offenses and sentenced in 2012. Along with eight other men, he was found guilty of multiple sex offenses against children as young as 13. They groomed their victims across various takeaway restaurants in Rochdale in Greater Manchester. Ahmed is set to be released on Thursday, having only served a fraction of his sentence. While Ahmed has been stripped of his British citizenship, he cannot be deported from the country. According to a provision in the Immigration Act 1971, Commonwealth migrants who arrived in the United Kingdom before 1973 cannot be removed. As Ahmed arrived before 1973, he is exempt from deportation under the law. The Commonwealth is an association of 56 countries, most of which were colonies and dependencies of the British Empire. “Ahmed’s horrific crimes were at the heart of the grooming gangs scandal that represents one of the darkest moments in our country’s history. The most vulnerable people were abused and exploited at the hands of evil child rapists and must face the full force of the law,” said a Home Office spokesman. While Ahmed will not be deported, he will remain on the sex offenders register for life. Ahmed will be subject to curfews and exclusion zones, with an electronic tag to track his movements. He will also be barred from contacting any young person, required to live in supervised accommodation, and will be barred from re-entering the country if he leaves. 💬 KEY QUOTE: “This depraved paedophile should have been deported to Pakistan years ago. The people of Rochdale want him booted out of the country and it’s simply unacceptable that the government of Pakistan are refusing to take him back. If the Citizenship Act needs to be amended to do that, ministers should look at doing just that.” – Paul Waugh, Member of Parliament (MP) for Rochdale. 🎯 IMPACT: The Ministry of Justice will impose exclusion zones and other measures on Ahmed, which is expected to cost the British taxpayer thousands. The inability to deport Ahmed has led to public frustration and calls for legislative changes. The government has also faced renewed pressure to negotiate the return of grooming gang members to their countries of origin. This story may complicate Labour MP for Makerfield and prospective Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s bid for the Labour leadership. Burnham previously served as Mayor of Greater Manchester, during which time he was criticized for his approach to the grooming gangs. Maggie Oliver, a former Greater Manchester Police (GMP) officer turned whistleblower, accused Burnham earlier in May of failing to engage with survivors and orchestrating a cover-up of the grooming gang scandal. “[It] was actually a cover-up… They did not speak to a single victim or a single survivor who had been caught in the last seven years… We missed a huge opportunity to bring changes that are needed,” said Oliver at the time. |
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