Court orders Immigration to grant Indian businessman residence permit

The Accra High Court has ordered the Ghana Immigration Service to grant an Indian businessman, Mr Ashok Kumar Sivaram, a temporary residence permit.

The court, presided over by Mrs Justice Naa Adoley Azu, said the move is to allow the businessman the opportunity to fight for his business’ interest and other matters currently before the law courts.

According to the court, Ghana has an obligation under international law to allow people who have genuine businesses to protect their investments.

“If we are not careful as a country, we will create erroneous impressions that aliens in Ghana are not treated with international humanitarian standards," the presiding judge said on Friday.

Mr Sivaram was deported by the GIS on June 1, 2017, following an order by Mr Dery on the basis that he used a forged marriage certificate to support his application for citizenship.

Not happy with the deportation, lawyers for Mr Sivaram filed an application for judicial review by way of certiorari for the order to be nullified by the Accra High Court.

The court, presided over by Mr Justice Kweku T. Ackah-Boafo, on July 31, 2017 upheld Mr Sivaram’s application and quashed the deportation order.

It was the court’s view that the Interior Minister exceeded his jurisdiction when he determined that the businessman had engaged in fraud and subsequently deported him.

According to the court, the lawful procedure was for Mr Sivaram to have been put before a court of lawful jurisdiction for a case of fraud to be determined against him.

As a result of the court ruling, Mr Sivaram returned to the country on August 2, 2017 but was detained by officials of the GIS at the Kotoka International Airport (KIA).

Once again, lawyers for the businessman went to the Accra High Court and the court, on August 4, 2017, ordered Mr Sivaram’s immediate release, describing his detention as unlawful, a violation of his rights and an affront to justice.

The court, however, ordered the GIS to seize the businessman’s passport until August 8, 2017 and also ordered Mr Sivaram to report himself to the GIS before or on August 8, 2017.

It further ordered that after August 8, the GIS should give the businessman’s passport back to him if it found no ground for him to continuously report himself to the service and also allow Mr Sivaram to apply for a regularisation of his stay, in accordance with laid down procedure.