The John Howard government on Sunday came in for severe criticism by the Australian media for the 'disgraceful' treatment meted out to Indian doctor Mohammed Haneef, cleared of charges in connection with the failed UK terror plot, and for 'trying to shift blame' on police.
'For PM, it's all in the Game' was one of the headlines which appeared in The Age daily, with a photograph of Immigration Minister Kevin Andrews trying to convince the media for his decision not to restore Haneef's visa, which was cancelled on character grounds, but also explaining why he agreed to the request of the doctor to leave Australia.
Stating that the 'disgraceful treatment of Dr Haneef has all the hallmarks of a typical Howard government political play,' the daily criticised the prime minister for denying his involvement in the case by claiming that 'he knows nothing' and none of the key decisions in this case were made by him.
'When will Howard take responsibility,' it questioned.
'Mohammed Haneef's character has been trashed by a government prepared to do anything to cling onto power. Yet despite the collapse of the case, no one in the government has the decency to apologise or even admit that Haneef has been treated unfairly,' it said.
Haneef, who spent almost four weeks in custody, was charged with providing 'reckless' support to a terrorist group because last year he gave a mobile phone SIM card to his second cousin Sabeel Ahmed, charged in the UK over last month's failed car bombings in London and Glasgow. Haneef left for India on Saturday night.
In an opinion piece, another leading daily The Australian said that in treating 'an innocent man (Haneef) so harshly, the government has betrayed the trust that most Australians gave it relation to terrorism. It will be hard to undo the damage.'
'The incompetence of Immigration Minister Kevin Andrews, government prosecutors and the police over the Mohammed Haneef case will damage the fight against terrorism in this country for years,' it said.
In fact, the Haneef case has been seen as a vindication for the media, which ignored flak from Howard and police to point out flaws in the evidence, it said.
It was the media, which had revealed the mistakes that led to the collapse of the case on Friday, involving false prosecution claims that included Haneef's SIM card was found in a burning car that crashed into Glasgow Airport.