A federal judge has struck down a policy introduced by US President Donald Trump’s administration that suspended the issuance of immigrant visas to applicants from 75 countries including Bangladesh, ruling that the measure exceeded Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s legal authority.
Judge Jeannette Vargas of the Southern District of New York said Friday the policy was “patently unlawful” and conflicted with federal immigration law, which bars the secretary of state from interfering in consular officers’ adjudication of immigrant visas, reports Al Jazeera.
“The Policy, which categorically prohibits the issuance of immigrant visas based upon the nationality of the applicant, represents a direct abrogation of this statutory scheme,” she wrote.
Vargas, appointed by former Democratic President Joe Biden, issued the ruling in a case brought by immigrant rights groups Catholic Legal Immigration Network and African Communities Together, along with visa applicants and US citizens sponsoring relatives from the affected countries.
The suspension, which took effect in January, targeted applicants from Latin American nations including Brazil, Colombia and Uruguay; Balkan states such as Bosnia and Albania; South Asian countries including Pakistan and Bangladesh; and numerous nations across Africa, the Middle East and the Caribbean.
The State Department had argued that applicants from those countries posed “a high risk for becoming a public charge and recourse to local, state and federal government resources in the United States.”
Trump has pursued an aggressive immigration crackdown during his presidency, saying it is aimed at strengthening domestic security.
According to the Center for Constitutional Rights, the freeze was one of several restrictions rolled out in quick succession, including a broader travel ban covering 39 countries that took effect 1 January and a pause on diversity visa issuance in late December.
Rights groups contend the measures violate free speech and due process rights, particularly for minorities, and raise concerns about racial profiling.
The State Department has not yet commented on the ruling.
