:dateline:In a statement shared with Sikh24, Sikhs for Justice stated that the two month long battle to save Paramjeet Singh Pamma from extradition took a lot of “blood, sweat and tears”. �Sikhs for Justice played an eminent role in the campaign, where its legal adviser Gurpatwant Singh Pannun literally moved to Portugal for a month long legal battle. �Pannun, along with other lawyers, were able to successfully get the extradition orders revoked on basis that Paramjeet Singh Pamma has been given asylum in the UK. �Other organizations in the UK also played an important role in campaigning for the release.�
The press statement issued by Sikhs for Justice stated –
Portugal�s Justice Minister Francisca van Dunem has rejected the request by Indian authorities to release the 42-year-old father-of-four to their custody.�Police officers who had arrived from the Punjab to pick Mr Singh up had�already been �routed� by a criminal complaint put in by Mr Singh�s legal team�alleging past acts of torture of prisoners in jail.�But now India�s bid to detain Mr Singh on what it called terrorist charges has been firmly kicked in the teeth.�Human rights lawyer Gurpatwant Pannun – who has been at the head of the legal fight since Mr Singh was arrested in Albufeira before Christmas – is now on his way to Beja jail to secure his client�s release, and prepare for an emotional journey home.�This has been an issue that inflamed sikhs across the world.�Since taking up the story in December, the Resident has been in touch with multiple sources, all of whom stressed India�s appalling human rights record.�A member of Mr Singh�s defence team told RTP news today that the arrest was politically motivated from the start.��It is not the first time Interpol Red Notices have been used for political purposes�, the spokesman for Sikhs for Justice told the news channel.�Later this evening, RTP will be covering a special report on the story from�9pm.�But for now, Mr Singh�s family and thousands of supporters throughout the world are celebrating what all agree is a situation where common sense has fortunately been seen to have prevailed.�The statement coming from the Justice Ministry shortly after midday today said the extradition request had been found inadmissible due to the fact Mr Singh held refugee status – awarded by the British government in 2000 – and as such, was at liberty to travel freely to other EU countries, including Portugal.��A large part of the facts on which extradition is requested occurred in India at a time when refugee status had already been attributed by the United Kingdom�, added Francisca Van Dunem, stressing the reasons for giving Mr Singh asylum had not changed since Britain opened its doors to him.�Citing all the laws and conventions used by Mr Singh�s defence to attack the extradition bid, the statement from the Justice Ministry concluded that �these various legal standards� prohibited Portugal from sending Mr Singh back to a country �from which he had allegedly been persecuted and ran the risk of persecution�.�Francisca Van Dunem�s decision follows an impressive series of efforts to secure Mr Singh�s release.�MPs throughout the UK have lobbied the British government and here too, a parliamentary commission on�Constitutional Affairs only last week joined the campaign, sending its own petition to minister Van Dunem.�In January, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn appealed directly to Portuguese prime minister Ant�nio Costa, while Euro MEP Ana Gomes wrote her personal appeal to the Justice Minister from Brussels.�Meantime, efforts by the global Sikh community saw protests outside Portuguese embassies throughout North America, Europe and Asia, including a 200-strong protest in Lisbon outside parliament last week.��We�re delighted by the news�, reports the Sikh Federation today, stressing it is �grateful that the Minister of Justice in Portugal has rejected the false case by the Indian Government and its efforts to defame the Sikh community and Paramjeet Singh�.
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