Canadian authorities summon Qadri for violating oath

Canadian authorities on Friday summoned Minhajul Quran International (MQI) chief Dr Tahirul Qadri on February 5, and sought explanation from him for violating the oath he took while seeking asylum, Express News reported.

The authorities said that Qadri violated the oath stating that he was not allowed to enter the country he had sought asylum from.

According to Express News correspondent Shakeel Anjum, Abdul Shakoor Qadri, otherwise known as Tahir Qadri, had sought asylum from Canada in 2008, fearing threats to his life after he met with the Danish cartoonist responsible for making blasphemous caricatures of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh).

Qadri, through his lawyer Mendel Green, had requested that he was receiving death threats from Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) and Sipah-e-Sahaba.

On October 17, 2009, his asylum application was accepted, while he was issued the Canadian passport about six months back.

The MQI chief has also been receiving welfare funds from the Canadian government, citing health issues.

Qadri, who led a 5-day long march in Islamabad which concluded Thursday evening, is currently present in Pakistan.

He is scheduled to fly back to Canada on January 27 along with his family.

Qadri summoned for asylum oath breach

Firebrand cleric Tahir-ul-Qadri, who led a massive protest against the government in Islamabad, has been summoned by Canadian authorities to explain a violation of the oath he had taken while seeking asylum there, under which he had stated that he was not allowed to enter Pakistan.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police summoned Mr. Qadri, the head of the Tehrik Minhaj-ul-Quran, to appear on February 5, Express News channel reported on Friday.

The Canadian authorities said Mr. Qadri had violated an oath stating that he was not allowed to enter Pakistan.

Mr. Qadri, also known as Abdul Shakoor Qadri, had sought asylum in Canada in 2008, saying there were threats to his life after he met the Danish cartoonist responsible for blasphemous caricatures of the Prophet Mohammed.

Through his lawyer Mendel Green, Mr. Qadri had claimed that he had been threatened by the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, Lashkar-e-Jhangvi and Sipah-e-Sahaba.

His asylum application was accepted on October 17, 2009 and he was issued a Canadian passport about six months ago, the channel reported.

Mr. Qadri has reportedly been receiving welfare funds from the Canadian government on health grounds, the report said.

The cleric ended his protest aimed at ousting the government after he signed an agreement with a government team on Thursday.

Under the deal struck between the two sides, Pakistan government agreed to appoint a caretaker Prime Minister by consensus ahead of the next general election.

Mr. Qadri had returned to Pakistan last month after living in Canada for seven years.

Several TV news channels reported on Friday that Mr. Qadri and members of his family had been booked to fly to Toronto via Dubai on January 27.

http://tribune.com.pk/story/495741/qadri-summoned-by-royal-canadian-monitoring-police-for-violating-oath/

http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/qadri-summoned-for-asylum-oath-breach/article4319820.ece