A man jailed for plotting to bomb the London Stock Exchange has been allowed to remain in the UK on human rights grounds, despite his asylum claim being rejected.
Shah Rahman, a Bangladeshi national, was one of four extremists convicted in 2012 over an al-Qaeda-inspired plot targeting central London.
Court documents show Rahman applied for asylum in 2017 following his release on licence. Authorities rejected the claim under the Refugee Convention, which excludes individuals involved in serious crimes or terrorism.
However, officials granted him restricted leave to remain after determining that deporting him to Bangladesh would breach Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which protects against torture or inhuman or degrading treatment.
The details emerged during legal proceedings involving Rahman’s wife, Parveen Purbhoo, a Mauritian national.
Purbhoo was stopped by immigration officers at Heathrow Airport in August 2021, where Islamist material was found on her phone, including propaganda and videos linked to extremist content.
Despite this, she initially entered the UK and lived with Rahman until his recall to prison in February 2022, after he breached notification requirements by failing to declare a mobile phone, email address and bank account.
A police report presented to the court said Purbhoo appeared “blasé” about the material found on her device and admitted she wanted to learn more about it.
A forensic psychology report also found she was “complicit” in Rahman’s breaches.
In 2023, then home secretary Suella Braverman permanently excluded Purbhoo from entering the UK.
A tribunal has now upheld that decision, rejecting her appeal. Judges found she had failed to explain how extremist material came to be on her phone and confirmed her involvement in Rahman’s unlawful activities.