Shabir Ahmed barred from Rochdale under strict licence conditions as government pushes to deport him

Shabir Ahmed, the ringleader of the Rochdale grooming gang jailed in 2012, was released from prison on licence on 2 July after serving 14 years of a 22-year sentence for multiple rape and sexual offences against young girls. Rochdale Daily can confirm, based on conditions set out by the Home Office and Ministry of Justice, that he is not living in Rochdale and is barred from entering the borough.

His licence conditions include an exclusion zone covering Rochdale and Oldham, electronic GPS tagging to monitor his movements, a requirement to live in approved accommodation staffed 24 hours a day, and a ban from his last known address in Oldham. The Ministry of Justice has said he is subject to the toughest supervision possible and would be returned to prison immediately if any condition were breached.

Ahmed, 73, was initially placed in approved premises in Accrington, Lancashire. After that address was shared on social media, prompting protests in the town and calls from the local MP for his removal, he was moved. The government has not confirmed his current location, and Rochdale Daily will not publish unverified claims about his whereabouts. Speculation of that kind has already forced one relocation and puts bystanders at the shared addresses at risk.

The question survivors and residents have pressed hardest is why he remains in the country at all. Ahmed was stripped of his British citizenship after his conviction, and victims had been led to believe he would be deported on release. It has since emerged that a provision of the Immigration Act 1971 prevents the removal of Commonwealth citizens who arrived in the United Kingdom before 1973, as Ahmed did as a teenager in 1967.

The government says it is exploring every option to remove him. Downing Street has confirmed talks with Pakistan, and a Home Office minister told the Commons that “all options are on the table”, saying the government would not give up its efforts given the nature of his crimes. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has set out plans to amend the 1971 Act so that people convicted of the most serious offences, including child sexual exploitation, can no longer rely on its protections, and ministers have indicated emergency legislation could be considered.

Pakistan, however, has publicly rejected the request. Officials in Islamabad have said responsibility for Ahmed lies with Britain, where he was brought up, and he is reported to have renounced his Pakistani citizenship, which complicates removal further even if the British law changes. The Prime Minister's spokesman has declined to comment on specific proposals while the talks continue.

The pressure on ministers is cross-party. The Conservatives have proposed amending the government's immigration legislation to close the loophole, with their leader urging ministers to adopt the change and the shadow home secretary suggesting visa sanctions or cuts to aid if Pakistan continues to refuse. Greater Manchester's mayor is among those who have called publicly for deportation, and the MP for Hyndburn, where Ahmed was first housed, has demanded he be barred from the North West entirely.

Campaigners including former Greater Manchester Police detective Maggie Oliver have criticised the handling of the release, saying victims learned of it through social media and continue to live with fear that the authorities have not taken seriously.

Rochdale Daily will update this article as official information is released. Readers should treat any claim about Ahmed's location that does not come from the Home Office, the Ministry of Justice, Greater Manchester Police or the courts as unverified.