An Indian couple facing deportation say they should be allowed to stay in Australia forever because their son was automatically given citizenship when he turned 10.
Amandeep and Stiven Singh, who live in Wyndham Vale, Melbourne, have been ordered to leave the country by November after they spent years on bridging visas fighting their repeated permanent residency rejections at tribunals.
But the couple, who work in airport security and as a driver and came to Australia in 2009, are now arguing they should be given special treatment because their 12-year-old son Abhijot is an Australian citizen, A Current Affair reported.
Abhijot benefited from a law that grants citizenship to children born in Australia on their 10th birthday regardless of their parents’ legal statuses, and has been given the choice of leaving with his parents or staying behind.
“He’s never lived without us,” Ms Singh said.
“We both work full time and we pay tax, we didn’t commit any crime.”
The Singhs’ case was assessed for special consideration in March by Assistant Immigration Minister Matt Thistlethwaite, who is a big supporter of mass immigration from India, but he decided not to intervene after considering the matter for 25 minutes.
Family lawyer Joseph Italiano, a former immigration tribunal member, said he “took longer to have a cappuccino”, and argued that the Singhs should be able to stay because of new guidelines that came into effect after the decision to deport them was made.
Immigration Minister Tony Burke said in a statement: “The Indian Australian community has a proud history of working strictly within the law and abiding by the Migration Act.
“This couple has been told to leave. They should show their respect for Australian law, leave and then apply offshore.”
Mr Italiano claimed the family were not eligible to apply offshore, and said their only option left was a High Court appeal that would “bankrupt them”.
Header image: Amandeep and Stiven Singh (A Current Affair).
