"Why are they picking on me?"

Shavaro Ali, owner of Shireen Tandoori.

IMMIGRATION officials are being accused of victimising an Inverness businessman who insists he will shut his restaurant rather than pay a £5,000 fine for employing two staff who did not have permission to work in Britain.

Shavaro Ali claims he did everything possible to check papers carried by the men, who were referred to the Shireen Tandoori in Union Street by an English employment agency.

"One had what appeared to be a British passport, the other had the a visa giving him the right to work in this country, so I don’t know what more I could have done," he said yesterday. "How am I supposed to know if it is not right? It’s a nightmare for us and I think the authorities should be more organised.

"It is unfair. They [UK Border Agency] said they weren’t the right documents but how was I to know? They have to show us what is right and what is wrong.

"If I shut down my restaurant would that make them happy?"

The Shireen Tandoori, which opened 12 months ago, was one of several restaurants raided by the UK Border Agency in November, but Mr Ali says he received three separate visits from officials last year.

"I feel like they are coming against me. It has cost me legally and is damaging my business and my reputation. It’s a very difficult situation for me, I don’t want to pay the fine."

One of the two workers claimed to be British, the other was from Bangladesh and purported to hold a 24 month visa which included working rights.

Mr Ali has submitted the paperwork - described by his solicitor Lorna Murray as high quality forgeries - to the agency.

"I feel like they have set on me, probably because they don’t want me to run the business or they don’t like me," added Mr Ali, who runs the restaurant with his wife Hasna Khanom.

"I might have to close because they keep coming. I am happy to close down my restaurant but before I do I have to let the public know this is happening.

"I am a victim and I don’t know why they are doing this to me."

The premises were targeted as part of an ongoing campaign to tackle immigration crime.

An agency spokeswoman said any refusal by Mr Ali to pay the fine would be pursued, possibly as far as taking the business to court.

"We don’t expect employers to be immigration experts, but we do expect them to carry out basic checks like viewing and taking copies of passports to ensure employees have the right to work in the UK," she explained. "These checks are required by law. If employers have concerns about whether staff - or their documents - are genuine they can contact us."

In one piece of good news for Mr Ali, Highland Licensing Board decided on Tuesday not to review his drinks licence in light of the immigration breach. Instead it issued a written warning.

A Small Mistake

ANOTHER Inverness restaurant targeted in November’s raids is paying a £5,000 fine after six men were found to be working there illegally.

But Keith Fung, of Jimmy Chung’s in Bank Street, complained that frequent changes in the immigration law did not help owners.

"It’s not just difficult, it’s awful," he said. "For one small mistake I have been punished like that and what will the consequences be? My restaurant might be bankrupt and how many families will suffer from that? It’s not fair.

"I am not trying to dodge not paying tax or something like that, so there must be leniency in the laws or a simpler way for the Border Agency to warn us."

He was also issued with a warning letter by the licensing board after it rejected calls by Councillor Drew Millar for a reduction in liquor licence hours for three months.

No-one was available to comment from the Jaipur restaurant in Bridge Street, Inverness, which was recently fined £15,000 after five men were found working there illegally.