A Canadian Federal Court judge has set aside the deportation order against Munir Ahmad Malhi, a former head constable in Pakistan’s Punjab Police Service, granting him another opportunity to remain in Canada after ruling that the earlier decision was unreasonable.
Justice Meaghan M. Conroy, in a judgment reported by the National Post, held that the reasoning used to justify Malhi’s removal did not meet the required standard of reasonableness and ordered that the matter be reconsidered by a different decision-maker.
Malhi, a Pakistani national, served in the Punjab Police Service for nearly four decades, from 1979 until his retirement in 2016. He and his wife entered Canada in January 2020 and applied for refugee protection, claiming they faced persecution in Pakistan because of their Ahmadiyya faith.
Canada’s Refugee Protection Division initially accepted their claim, concluding that they were at serious risk if returned to Pakistan. That decision was later challenged by the immigration minister, who argued that Malhi should be excluded from refugee protection due to his long service in the Punjab Police Service, which has been accused of widespread human rights abuses.
Following a subsequent review, Canada’s Immigration Division ruled in 2024 that the Punjab Police Service had been involved in crimes against humanity, including torture, enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings. Although the minister did not allege that Malhi personally carried out such acts, the division found that his continued service amounted to a voluntary, knowing and significant contribution to those crimes, and ordered his deportation.
In her ruling dated January 6, Justice Conroy criticised that conclusion, observing that while the Punjab Police Service has been linked to serious abuses, it is not an organisation with an exclusively criminal purpose but a state-wide police force that also performs legitimate law enforcement functions. She noted that in such cases, the connection between an individual’s role and any criminal activity must be carefully examined.
The judge also faulted the Immigration Division for failing to properly assess Malhi’s position within the force. She pointed out that constable is the lowest rank in the Punjab Police Service and said this omission was a serious error. Conroy stressed that an individual cannot be deemed complicit in international crimes merely for remaining in their job, unless they exercised control over, or had responsibility for, those committing the abuses.
Granting Malhi’s application for judicial review, Justice Conroy sent the case back for redetermination, effectively giving the former police officer another chance to argue that he should be allowed to stay in Canada.
