Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar told Ed Miliband that Pakistan has no legal or bilateral mechanism to accept convicted child sex offender Shabir Ahmed.
LONDON, UK – Web Desk: Pakistan has rejected a British request to take back Shabir Ahmed, a convicted child sex offender and former ringleader of the Rochdale grooming gang, saying there is currently no legal or bilateral mechanism that would allow his transfer to Pakistan.
The issue was raised by UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband during talks with Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office in London on Thursday, according to a report
Dar told the British side that Pakistan has no existing law or formal bilateral arrangement under which Ahmed could be transferred to the country. Pakistani officials said the two countries also have no treaty covering the extradition or transfer of convicted sex offenders.
Miliband raises Ahmed’s case with Dar
According to sources cited in the report, Miliband personally raised Ahmed’s case during his meeting with Dar and stressed the British government’s concerns about the convicted offender remaining in the UK.
Miliband reportedly asked Pakistan to consider accepting Ahmed, while the Pakistani side acknowledged the UK’s concerns but maintained that existing legal arrangements do not provide a mechanism for such a transfer.
Pakistan has nevertheless agreed to consider the British request.
Why Pakistan is refusing to take Ahmed
Pakistan’s position is that Ahmed has renounced his Pakistani citizenship and has spent virtually his entire life in the UK.
Pakistani officials have also argued that his crimes were committed in Britain and that he was convicted by a British court, making the case primarily a matter for the UK authorities.
Earlier reporting indicated that Islamabad views Ahmed as an internal British matter and has questioned why Pakistan should assume responsibility for an offender who lived and committed his crimes in the UK.
Ahmed was convicted of child rape offences
Ahmed, 73, was released from prison last month after serving 14 years of a 22-year sentence for 30 child rape offences, according to the Geo News report.
The case concerns the wider Rochdale grooming gang scandal in England, which involved the sexual exploitation of vulnerable girls.
The UK government has been seeking a legal route to remove Ahmed from Britain after his release.
UK plans changes to immigration law
UK Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has announced plans to amend immigration legislation to close a legal loophole that has prevented the Home Office from deporting Ahmed.
The proposed changes are intended to address restrictions that have complicated his removal despite the fact that he has been stripped of British citizenship.
However, any attempt to deport Ahmed to Pakistan still faces the issue of Islamabad’s refusal to accept him under the current legal framework.
Pakistan-UK relations under pressure
The dispute comes against the backdrop of broader Pakistan-UK cooperation on immigration, deportations, security and criminal matters.
Pakistan has previously warned that forcing the Ahmed case could affect its cooperation with Britain on the return of illegal migrants.
According to earlier reporting, Pakistan has helped Britain return more than 1,400 Pakistani nationals during the year ending March 2026, including failed asylum seekers and immigration offenders.
Islamabad has argued that cooperation on the wider migration issue should not be undermined by the Ahmed dispute.
Possible diplomatic complications
Sources cited by Geo News said Pakistan has previously asked Britain to consider handing over Pakistani dissidents living in the UK in exchange for accepting Ahmed.
However, there is no indication that London has agreed to such an arrangement.
The formal statement issued after the Dar-Miliband meeting did not mention Ahmed. Instead, both sides said they had reviewed bilateral relations and agreed to establish a structured mechanism for formal talks between their foreign ministries.
What happens next?
The immediate dispute remains unresolved.
Pakistan has agreed to consider Britain’s request but continues to maintain that there is no existing legal or bilateral mechanism for accepting Ahmed.
The UK government, meanwhile, is pursuing changes to immigration law while seeking a solution that would allow his removal.
The case could become a wider test of Pakistan-UK cooperation on deportations, immigration and law enforcement if the two governments fail to reach an agreement.
