Ahmed v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), 2005 FC 532

Date: 20050420

Docket: IMM-9153-03

Citation: 2005 FC 532

Toronto, Ontario, April 20^th, 2005

Present:           The Honourable Mr. Justice Campbell                                

BETWEEN:

                                                              FAROOK AHMED

Applicant

and

THE MINISTER OF CITIZENSHIP AND IMMIGRATION

Respondent

                                            REASONS FOR ORDER AND ORDER

[1]                In the present case, the Applicant, a citizen of Bangladesh, claims refugee protection on the ground of his political opinion. An essential feature of the Applicant's claim is that his persecutors have laid false criminal charges against him in Bangladesh, and, as a result, there is presently a warrant outstanding for his arrest. In support of the Applicant's claim, on the record tendered before the Refugee Protection Division ("RPD") there is unrefuted evidence that the charges exist, and on the evidence of a lawyer, they are active as of 2002. There is no evidence upon which to conclude that, at the time of the hearing before the RPD, the charges were not still active.

[2]                In its decision, the RPD dismissed the Applicant's claim on the basis of a negative credibility finding. There is no mention in the decision of the critical independent evidence with respect to the false charges outstanding against the Applicant. Given that the false charges are an essential feature of the Applicant's claim, and the importance of them was placed directly before the RPD in the argument made by the Applicant's Counsel at the time of the hearing, and given that this essential feature of the Applicant's case was in no way dealt with on the face of the RPD's decision, I find that the RPD's decision was made in reviewable error.             

                                                                       ORDER

Accordingly, I set aside the RPD's decision and refer the matter back to a differently constituted panel for redetermination.

                                                                                                                         "Douglas R. Campbell"            

                                                                                                                                                   J.F.C.                           

FEDERAL COURT

Names of Counsel and Solicitors of Record

DOCKET:                                                       IMM-9153-03

STYLE OF CAUSE:                           FAROOK AHMED

                                                                                                                                            Applicant

and

THE MINISTER OF CITIZENSHIP AND

IMMIGRATION

Respondent

DATE OF HEARING:                                   APRIL 19, 2005

PLACE OF HEARING:                                 TORONTO, ONTARIO

REASONS FOR ORDER

AND ORDER BY:                                         CAMPBELL J.

DATED:                                                          APRIL 20, 2005

APPEARANCES BY:                 

Clifford Luyt                                                      FOR THE APPLICANT

Anshumala Juyal                                                FOR THE RESPONDENT

SOLICITORS OF RECORD:

WALDMAN & ASSOCIATES

Toronto, Ontario                                               FOR THE APPLICANT

John H. Sims, Q.C.

Deputy Attorney General of Canada                  FOR THE RESPONDENT