Imam Muhammad Masood, brother of Jamaatud Daawa chief Hafiz Saeed, facing deportation for immigration irregularities, may apply for political asylum in the United States.His lawyer argues that if deportation orders are passed against Masood and his family, he would ask for “political asylum” because Masood has expressed pro-American views and disowned his brother Hafiz Saeed, founder of the extremist group banned by the US and the United Nations. Masood has been out on bail since November 21, 2006. He, his son Hassan and a Chelmsford imam were among 33 people who were picked up on November 15 as part of a multi-state immigration sweep. The next hearing of the case in on May 9.
Masood was present with his wife and five of their eight children for a hearing in a federal immigration court in Boston as the week began in a case that could result in their removal from the country. The immigration court is expected to set a date this week for removal hearings for the Muslim cleric and members of his family. The government is seeking to have the family deported because of visa violations. Three of the clericÂ’s children are US citizens, having been born here.
MasoodÂ’s lawyer William Joyce has said that he plans to ask the judge to do two things: cancel the deportation hearings, and review the governmentÂ’s denial of his clientÂ’s 2001 visa application. He plans to request the cancellation partly because he argues that deportation would create hardship for MasoodÂ’s three US-born children, who arenÂ’t affected by the hearings and could stay in the United States.
Masood is facing two charges – that he never returned to Pakistan in 1991 as required by a Boston University student visa, and that he committed fraud in applying for a 2001 visa with help from a Brooklyn imam who was subsequently convicted of providing false visas.
Masood insists that he did return to Pakistan but admits that he did re-enter the US illegally in 1993, but argues in his defence that he paid a $7,000 fine for the violation in 2000 under an amnesty programme. He says the Brooklyn imam’s name was included on his 2001 visa application “by accident.” He and Joyce said they thought the error had been cleared up.
According to Patriot-Ledger, Masood came to the Sharon mosque in 1996, first as a teacher and then as spiritual leader in 1998. He and his son were detained and taken to the jail on November 15, just after the whole family had finished a visa interview in Boston. The family has continued to live in housing at the Sharon mosque since then, but Masood has not been paid by the Islamic Centre and has not led his congregation there. The mosqueÂ’s board of directors has said that the family cannot live there indefinitely, but so far it has not been asked to leave. The local Muslim community appears to support Masood and a couple of non-Muslim clerics and a community group have raised money for him for day-to-day expenses. The Boston chapter of the Muslim American Society reportedly raised $40,000 at a March 24 event at the Islamic Centre of Burlington. Some of his fellow Sharon clergy have also collected donations from their own congregations. Several area clergy are among more than 800 whoÂ’ve signed an online petition on the Muslim American Society Web site.