Sarabjit Singh, a citizen of India, sought asylum and withholding of removal in the United States after suffering two beatings by members of the Congress Party in Punjab while he was a member of the opposing Mann Party. An Immigration Judge found that Singh had established past persecution, which triggered a rebuttable presumption of a well-founded fear of future persecution. However, the Immigration Judge and subsequently the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) determined that the government had rebutted this presumption. The agencies concluded that Singh could avoid future persecution by relocating to another part of India and that it would be reasonable to expect him to do so. Singh appealed to the Ninth Circuit, arguing that the agencies erred in their factual findings regarding his ability to relocate and the risk of being tracked by the Congress Party.
The Ninth Circuit reviewed the agency's factual findings for substantial evidence, a highly deferential standard where findings are conclusive unless any reasonable adjudicator would be compelled to conclude to the contrary. The court first addressed the relocation argument. It found substantial evidence supporting the agency's conclusion that Singh, as a relatively low-level Mann Party worker without substantial influence or notoriety, would not be targeted outside of Punjab. The court noted that Singh's argument regarding the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act was unpersuasive because the evidence cited was from several years ago and targeted Muslims more than Sikhs. Regarding the risk of tracking, the court upheld the agency's finding that Congress Party members could not effectively track Singh in other regions. The record showed Singh had no criminal record and India lacks a centralized registration system. The court rejected Singh's arguments that his Aadhaar identification card or tenant verification systems would allow tracking, noting sufficient safeguards exist for the former and the latter has limited utility. The court also dismissed concerns about facial recognition technology as insufficient to overturn the finding. Second, the court found it reasonable for Singh to relocate, citing evidence of sizable Sikh communities in various parts of India. The court declined to reweigh the evidence, stating that when two permissible ways to read the record exist, it cannot say a conclusion contrary to the agency's is compelled. Finally, the court affirmed the rejection of Singh's claim for humanitarian asylum, finding his prior treatment did not rise to the level of 'extremely severe persecution' required for such relief.
The Ninth Circuit's denial of the petition means the BIA's decision stands. Sarabjit Singh remains subject to removal from the United States. The decision reinforces the application of the substantial evidence standard in relocation cases, particularly where the petitioner is a low-level party member without a criminal record. It clarifies that technical errors in agency reports, such as mislabeling a source or missing a 'not' in a sentence, do not vitiate the reasoning if the context makes the intended meaning clear. The ruling leaves open the question of how specific technological advancements might impact future relocation analyses but affirms that current safeguards are sufficient in this context.
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