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The Federal Court of Appeal has ruled that Ottawa’s Deepan Budlakoti is not stateless — at least not yet.
In rejecting Budlakoti’s latest attempt to have himself declared a Canadian citizen, the court said that the 25-year-old convicted drug trafficker is not stateless under international law until he has exhausted all reasonable attempts to gain citizenship.
The three-member appeal panel said Budlakoti must apply for citizenship to both Canada and India before he can ask a court to remedy his statelessness.
“Those avenues have been practically and legally available to him for years. Yet he has refrained from pursuing them. Now he should pursue them,” Judge David Stratas said, writing for the panel.
Budlakoti was born in Ottawa in October 1989 to parents, both Indian citizens, who were working at the Indian High Commission. Unlike anyone else born in Canada, however, children born to foreign diplomatic staff do not automatically gain Canadian citizenship.
His parents applied to stay in Canada and were granted Canadian citizenship in 1995. They listed their son as a dependant child, but did not apply for citizenship on his behalf, likely in the mistaken belief that he already held that status.
Budlakoti had no idea he wasn’t an official Canadian citizen until May 2010 when he ran afoul of the law. He was sentenced to three years in prison for weapons and cocaine trafficking, and ordered deported in December 2011 based on what federal officials deemed his “serious criminality.”
But India rejected him. The country has refused Canada’s request to issue him travel documents, saying he’s not an official citizen.
It means that Budlakoti continues to live under the restrictive terms of a federal deportation order that can’t be enforced. He’s not eligible for OHIP coverage.
In its decision, released Monday, the Federal Court of Appeal said Budlakoti has the right to apply for Indian citizenship since both his parents were Indian citizens at the time of his birth. What’s more, he also has the right to apply for Canadian citizenship under a provision of federal law that allows the immigration minister to grant citizenship in cases of “special or unusual hardship.”
Budlakoti could not be reached for comment Monday.
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In rejecting Budlakoti’s latest attempt to have himself declared a Canadian citizen, the court said that the 25-year-old convicted drug trafficker is not stateless under international law until he has exhausted all reasonable attempts to gain citizenship.
The three-member appeal panel said Budlakoti must apply for citizenship to both Canada and India before he can ask a court to remedy his statelessness.
“Those avenues have been practically and legally available to him for years. Yet he has refrained from pursuing them. Now he should pursue them,” Judge David Stratas said, writing for the panel.
Budlakoti was born in Ottawa in October 1989 to parents, both Indian citizens, who were working at the Indian High Commission. Unlike anyone else born in Canada, however, children born to foreign diplomatic staff do not automatically gain Canadian citizenship.
His parents applied to stay in Canada and were granted Canadian citizenship in 1995. They listed their son as a dependant child, but did not apply for citizenship on his behalf, likely in the mistaken belief that he already held that status.
Budlakoti had no idea he wasn’t an official Canadian citizen until May 2010 when he ran afoul of the law. He was sentenced to three years in prison for weapons and cocaine trafficking, and ordered deported in December 2011 based on what federal officials deemed his “serious criminality.”
But India rejected him. The country has refused Canada’s request to issue him travel documents, saying he’s not an official citizen.
It means that Budlakoti continues to live under the restrictive terms of a federal deportation order that can’t be enforced. He’s not eligible for OHIP coverage.
In its decision, released Monday, the Federal Court of Appeal said Budlakoti has the right to apply for Indian citizenship since both his parents were Indian citizens at the time of his birth. What’s more, he also has the right to apply for Canadian citizenship under a provision of federal law that allows the immigration minister to grant citizenship in cases of “special or unusual hardship.”
Budlakoti could not be reached for comment Monday.
查看原文...
