Convicted doctor loses deportation fight
An Indian-born doctor who served a jail term for molesting a female hospital patient while working in Perth has lost a bid to overturn his deportation.
Suhail Durani, 38,was today escorted by immigration security to the Federal Court where he and his wife Falaq heard he had his lost his legal battle to keep his visa so he could stay in Australia despite his conviction.
Durani, who also has a young son, was handed a two year and four month jail term after he was convicted of five offences against a 19-year-old female patient while examining her at RPH in February 2010.
He was released on parole but taken to the Perth Immigration Detention Centre for deportation - a move he attempted to fight in the court system.
A submission on his behalf during his legal battle had argued that his visa should not be cancelled because it would see him separated from his young son who was being cared for by his wife. Both his wife and child are Australian citizens.
Today, the Federal Court dismissed his application for a review of the Minister for Immigration and Border Protection’s decision to cancel his visa, meaning he will be removed from Australia unless he appeals.
Outside court, lawyer Shahid Shakur said his client was "utterly disappointed" with the result and would now look at whether an appeal would be lodged.
An appeal would normally have to be filed within 21 days but could take months to be heard.
Durani had been granted a visa under the skilled migration program to enable him to provide medical services in Australia.
His visa had been cancelled on the back of his sexual offences which the Minister had deemed "repugnant to the Australian community and offend the values of Australian society".
The Minister had found that while Durani’s deportation would be detrimental to his wife and son, that harm was not so severe that it outweighed the national interest in deporting him.
"His sexual offending was very serious and his conducted [sic] undermined the integrity of the skilled migration program as well as reducing public confidence in the nation’s health care system," the Minister’s reasons had stated.
