US court blocks visa suspension scheme for Pakistan, 74 other countries

WASHINGTON: A US judge on Friday found that a Trump administration policy to block the issue of immigrant visas to applicants from 75 countries, including Pakistan, went beyond Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s legislative power.

U.S. District Judge Jeannette Vargas in Manhattan ruled the policy announced by the State Department in January was “patently unlawful” and violated federal immigration law, which expressly divested the secretary of state of responsibility over processing of immigrant visas by consular personnel.The Policy is a blatant abrogation of this statutory structure, she said, and it categorically precludes the issue of immigrant visas depending upon the nationality of the applicant.

The suspension, which went into effect in January, was imposed by the State Department for applicants from Latin American countries like Brazil, Colombia and Uruguay; Balkan countries like Bosnia and Albania; South Asian countries Pakistan and Bangladesh; and applicants from many countries in Africa, the Middle East and the Caribbean.

The State Department said those applicants were “at a high risk for becoming a public charge and recourse to local, state and federal government resources in the United States.” The department did not immediately return a request for comment on the verdict.

The verdict was made by Vargas, an appointee of Democratic former president Joe Biden, in a complaint filed by immigrant rights groups Catholic Legal Immigration Network and African Communities And for those who are seeking immigrant visas and for U.S. citizens who are petitioning for immigrant visas for family members from the selected nations.

President Donald Trump has launched an aggressive assault on immigration that he says is intended to improve domestic security.

Rights groups believe the crackdown has breached free expression and due process rights and has created a hazardous environment, especially for ethnic minorities, who have voiced concerns about racial profiling.