Singh

concurring in part and dissenting in part:

I concur in the majority’s denial of Kulwant Kaur’s petition. Kaur admitted to the Immigration Judge that she lied. It is often impossible for asylum seekers to obtain documentary evidence. The integrity of our asylum system depends on asylum seekers’ truthfulness. It is not an abuse of discretion for the Board of Immigration Appeals to refuse to reopen Kaur’s case.

I do not join in the majority’s denial of Nirmal Singh’s petition — a denial of asylum to a husband because he did not stand up and expose the lies of his wife. The unity of husband and wife in today’s America is not so close that a wife speaks for a husband, nor that a husband adopts his wife’s words.

The record depicts Singh as a frightened and depressed man who unwittingly put his life in the hands of an unscrupulous attorney. The Indian police thrice arrested and tortured Singh. They killed Singh’s brother in a “false encounter” after the two brothers were arrested together during a protest. In his third arrest, the police beat him unconscious. Singh fled India.

Singh hired Randhir Kang to represent him in his asylum application filed shortly after his arrival in the…

We consider whether lying to the immigration authorities is a sufficient basis for an adverse credibility finding, and when a lie uttered by one spouse may fairly be attributed to the other.

Facts

Nirmal Singh filed an asylum application soon after he came to the United States in 1994. He claimed that he had been persecuted in India because of his support for the Akali Dal Mann Party. Singh testified that he was arrested and severely beaten three times for his political activities, and that he believed the police murdered his brother for participating in a political protest. The asylum officer disbelieved Singh and referred his application to an immigration judge for adjudication in removal proceedings.

A few months later, Singh’s wife Kulwant Kaur flew to the United States with their son. Singh picked them up at the airport and brought them to his home in San Jose. After they settled in, Kaur also applied for asylum. Someone apparently advised her that she couldn’t be granted asylum if she said she was living with her husband, so she lied on her application form. She claimed that Singh was not in the United States and that she had no information as to his whereabouts.…