Opinion ID: 173774
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Asylum Application and Hearing

Text: In his asylum application, Fernandes claimed that he was beaten by police after his arrest at the Sikh rally, and that a year later the police came to his home looking for him. Unable to find Fernandes, they arrested his wife and infant child instead. Fernandes claimed that his wife was raped while in custody. During his first asylum hearing, Fernandes testified about his alleged arrest at the Sikh demonstration and the subsequent arrest of his family. He also said that the police returned to his home a second time and that drunk officers tied him to a chair, beat him, and threatened that he would be killed unless he fled the country. On cross-examination, Fernandes admitted that he had joined the Sikh demonstration in 2000 because he sympathized with their causes but that he did not know much about the Sikh religion. He acknowledged that hundreds of participants, including other Christians, took part in the demonstration. He said that his neighbors, who were Hindus, told the police that he would be attending the demonstration but could not explain why he was targeted. Fernandes also testified about a number of facts that he later admitted were false. He claimed that he lived with a friend in Elk Grove, California; that he had been employed as a hotel musician in India; and that he had last spoken to his wife the day before the initial hearing before the IJ. He also stated that he attended a Catholic church in Elk Grove and that he rode his bicycle to church. During the hearing, Fernandes declined the opportunity to make changes to his declaration or application. Fernandes also admitted that he was fluent in English, even though he had previously claimed that he did not speak English when requesting a translator. [2] He explained this discrepancy by saying he was afraid to admit that he spoke English because he thought he would be in trouble for requesting a translator. He did not explain why he requested a translator in the first place. Finally, when asked about a conflict between his application, which indicated that he had been unemployed since October 1996, and his testimony, in which he claimed to have worked as a professional musician until 2001, Fernandes claimed that Boota Singh Basi (Basi), his application preparer, had made an error. When asked to explain this inconsistency further, Fernandes said: I have no answer for that.