CAT/C/68/D/568/2013
United Nations
Convention against Torture
and Other Cruel, Inhuman
or Degrading Treatment
or Punishment
Distr.: General
23 January 2020
Original: English
Committee against Torture
Decision adopted by the Committee under article 22 of the
Convention, concerning communication No. 568/2013*, **
Communication submitted by:
H.S. (represented by counsel, Rajwinder Singh
Bhambi)
Alleged victim:
The complainant
State party:
Canada
Date of complaint:
16 November 2013 (initial submission)
Document references:
Decision taken pursuant to rules 114 and 115 of
the Committee’s rules of procedure, transmitted
to the State party on 19 November 2013 (not
issued in document form)
Date of adoption of decision:
15 November 2019
Subject matter:
Deportation to India
Procedural issues:
Exhaustion of domestic remedies; level of
substantiation of claims; abuse of the right to file
a submission
Substantive issue:
Non-refoulement
Articles of the Convention:
1, 3
1.1
The complainant is H.S., a national of India born in 1989, who at the time of
submission was residing in Canada and was awaiting deportation to India, following the
rejection of his asylum application. He claims that his return to India would constitute a
violation by Canada of articles 1 and 3 of the Convention. The State party has made the
declaration pursuant to article 22 (1) of the Convention, effective from 13 November 1989.
The complainant is represented by counsel.
1.2 On 19 November 2013, pursuant to rule 114 of its rules of procedure, the Committee,
acting through its Rapporteur on new complaints and interim measures, asked the State
party not to expel the complainant to India while his complaint was being considered by the
Committee. The State party acceded to the request. On 5 September 2014, the Committee,
acting through the same Rapporteur, denied the request of the State party, dated 27
February 2014, to lift the interim measures.
* Adopted by the Committee at its sixty-eighth session (11 November–6 December 2019).
** The following members of the Committee participated in the examination of the communication:
Essadia Belmir, Felice Gaer, Abdelwahab Hani, Claude Heller Rouassant, Jens Modvig, Ana Racu,
Diego Rodríguez-Pinzón, Sébastien Touzé and Bakhtiyar Tuzmukhamedov.
GE.20-01024(E)