Bhubaneswar: The Australian government once again cancelled Novak Djokovic’s visa on Friday, saying that World No. 1 is unvaccinated for COVID-19 and may pose a risk to the community.
“Today I exercised my power under section 133C(3) of the Migration Act to cancel the visa held by Mr Novak Djokovic on health and good order grounds, on the basis that it was in the public interest to do so,” Immigration Minister Alex Hawke said in a statement.
Notably, Hawke had threatened to use his own powers to tear up Djokovic’s visa a second time after his legal team scored a victory by getting the cancellation of his visa by Melbourne airport border control quashed on Monday.
The cancellation effectively means Djokovic would be barred from a new Australian visa for three years, except under certain circumstances, the NDTV reported.
It is for the second time that Djokovic’s visa has been cancelled since he arrived in Melbourne on January 5 to defend his Australian Open title, claiming a vaccine exemption because of a positive PCR test result on December 16.
Though the Victoria state government and Tennis Australia, the tournament organizer, had exempted him from a COVID-19 vaccination requirement, the Australian Border Force cancelled his visa upon arrival in Melbourne. He had to spend four nights in hotel detention.
The tournament starts in three days and he still has the option of a legal challenge to avoid deportation, the Indian Express reported.
Also Read: France Allows Novak Djokovic To Play French Open Even If Unvaccinated
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