The Indian nationals have lived in the UK for 10 years
Two men who were previously released from an immigration van in Glasgow Southside last week after protestors blocked the roads will be deported, a source claims.
This comes after approximately 200 people surrounded an immigration enforcement van in Pollokshields as they protested against a deportation raid that occurred during Eid al-Fitr.
Lakhvir Singh and Sumit Sehdevi, who have both been living in the UK for 10 years, were detained whilst UK Border Agency officers raided a property in Glasgow Southside on 13 May.
The men were released by police on public safety grounds after huge crowds of local people stood around the van, with one protestor lying underneath the immigration enforcement vehicle.
Protesters in Glasgow have successfully halted the deportation of two members of their community by UK Immigration Enforcement. ✊ pic.twitter.com/lUFowVwXKO
— PoliticsJOE (@PoliticsJOE_UK) May 13, 2021
However, a source from the Home Office has said that the protest has merely delayed the ‘inevitable’ deportation of the two Indian nationals.
The source told told The Times: “They will still be detained and deported at a later date. We will continue to tackle illegal immigration and the harm it causes.”
Singh and Sehdevi are reportedly members of the local area’s Sikh Gurdwara temple. Both men have previously helped the homeless there.
Positive Action in Housing, a Refugee and migrant charity based in Glasgow, said the two men have lived in the UK for are “part of a community” after living in the UK for several years.
The charity’s director, Robina Qureshi, said: “The Home Office have referred to these men as illegal. Well they are wrong, and we are now investigating legal action against the Home Office for casting such aspersions.
“The term illegal in this context is part of the hostile environment. It’s not appropriate to use it for people who have lived in the UK for several years and are part of a community.
“The men now have legal representation and are in the process of trying to regularise their status. The fact that they had no active legal representation before means they were left vulnerable.”
