Key Points
- Indian tourist Diljith Thoppil Girijan spent five days in a Perth detention facility
- The 23-year-old was released after the Federal Circuit Court quashed the Australian government's decision to cancel his visa
- The Australian Border Force says it will review the incident
One month after the Australian government admitted “jurisdictional error” in cancelling the visas of three tourists and detaining them for 110 hours in Perth, another tourist has gone through a similar ordeal.
Diljith Thoppil Girijan, a 23-year-old tourist from India, was released from a detention facility in Perth after the Federal Circuit Court quashed the government's decision to cancel his visa.
The government conceded in the Federal Circuit Court that its decision was due to a "jurisdictional error" and that the officers at the airport had relied on an "irrelevant consideration".
In September three visitors from India were detained at Perth Airport because they “did not travel with their spouses” as stated in their visa application.
The government had cited “jurisdictional error” in that case also, prompting the court to set aside the decision and to order the government to pay the legal costs.
'I was panicking, I was crying'
Mr Girijan told SBS Malayalam he was scared and confused by the ordeal.
“I was mentally down and didn’t know what to do next. I still do not know what crime I had committed,” he said.
His visa was cancelled after nine hours of questioning by ABF officials at the airport.
They were questioning me as if I had committed some criminal acts. I pleaded with them to take me out of the room for some time because I was panicking. I was crying there.Diljith Thoppil Girijan
The ABF’s decision letter pointed out that Mr Girijan did not travel with his mother as indicated in his visa application and that he failed to inform the Department of Immigration about the leave dates approved by his Indian employer.
“The visa holder has failed to inform an officer in writing of the new circumstances and of the correct answers in them,” the visa cancellation letter said.
In the visa application, Mr Girijan had submitted leave approval from November 13 to January 17, but he arrived in Australia on
October 5.
“I was planning to travel with my mother, but she could not make it as she developed some health issues including cardiac problems and high diabetes. So I 'preponed' my leave and travelled with my cousin who is an Australian resident,” Mr Girijan said.
“I was not aware that I should submit leave approval. I was ready to get it from my employer the next day, but the ABF officers wanted to see it on the night during the questioning.”
Credit: SBS Malayalam
When Mr Girijan appealed the decision in a court of law, the government conceded that it was due to a jurisdictional error.
“The delegate [of the Minister of Immigration] fell into jurisdictional error by relying on an irrelevant consideration, namely that on arrival the applicant did not provide evidence of approved leave from the date of his arrival in Australia,” the government told the Federal Court.
“The respondent accepts that there was a realistic possibility that the outcome would have been different,” said a court order showing the government’s admission.
The ABF has agreed to pay $9,500 to Mr. Girijan to cover his legal costs.
'Does this happen to all communities?'
Ethnic Communities Council of WA president Suresh Rajan told SBS Malayalam that he has already raised this issue with many parliamentarians.
He accused the ABF of repeatedly overreaching their authority.
“They have admitted jurisdictional error, from which I understand that the officers were repeatedly overreaching the authority and taking decisions.”
He alleged that some communities are facing this issue more than others.
Does this happen to all communities? We haven’t heard many such cases from the European communities, but visitors from Asian and South Asian communities go through this.Ethnic Communities Council of WA president Suresh Rajan
However, ABF denied the allegation that the visa cancellation decisions are discriminatory.
“Australia operates a global and non-discriminatory migration program. Each case is decided on its individual merits according to law,” an ABF spokesperson told SBS Malayalam in an email statement.
ABF to review the incident
The ABF spokesperson also clarified that the latest event in Perth will be reviewed by the organisation with a view to improving the procedure.
“ABF officers are highly trained and their work in complex and challenging operating environments is integral to our border operations.
"Officers receive comprehensive initial and ongoing training, both at an individual level and collectively as required in response to emerging issues,” the statement said.
