A barrister with national set No5 Chambers represented the Home Office in court last week, in a high profile immigration appeal.

Vinesh Mandalia was at the First Tier Immigration Tribunal, sitting at Manchester Crown Court, as convicted paedophile Shabire Ahmed appealed the decision by Secretary of State to deprive him of his British citizenship. Ahmed was convicted in 2012 of being the ringleader of a group of Asian men who preyed on girls as young as 13 in Rochdale. He is currently serving a 19 year jail sentence for his part in the crimes and a separate 22 year sentence for convictions of rape.

Three judges will decide on Ahmed’s appeal.  Similar decisions to deprive British Citizenship were made against three others that were convicted for their roles in what has come to be described as the ‘Rochdale Sex Abuse’ convictions.  The decisions made by the Home Secretary to deprive those involved in serious organised crime and the related appeals, are the first time the powers conferred upon the Home Secretary have been exercised by her in cases where the deprivation of British citizenship is considered to be conducive to the public good.

Vinesh Mandelia began his career in Law as a Legal Executive and was admitted as a Fellow of the Institute of Legal Executives in June 1996. As a Legal Executive, he handled a wide-ranging caseload of civil litigation, before embarking upon his career at the Bar.

Since being called to the Bar in 1997, Vinesh has continued to practice in Civil, Public and Regulatory work. Vinesh has been a member of the Attorney General’s regional panel of counsel since 2003 and has recently represented the Home Office in a number of high-profile appeals that have attracted international media attention.