Australian hard-right leader loses racism case against Green senator after telling her to go 'back to Pakistan' during row over Queen's death

See more Daily Mail on Google - save us as a Preferred Source Published: 06:55 EDT, 28 July 2026 | Updated: 06:56 EDT, 28 July 2026 A popular hard-right Australian politician failed on Monday to overturn a racial vilification finding that was handed down after she told a Muslim senator to go back to Pakistan.Senator Pauline Hanson has emerged as one of Australia's most popular politicians, wooing voters with calls for strict immigration curbs, mass deportations of 'illegal migrants' and enhanced free speech protections.Hanson took aim at Pakistan-born Australian lawmaker Mehreen Faruqi in 2022 over comments made in the wake of Queen Elizabeth II's death.Faruqi, a left-leaning Greens senator, said she could not mourn the 'leader of a racist empire built on stolen lives, land and wealth of colonized people'.Hanson replied on social media: 'When you immigrated to Australia you took every advantage of this country.'You took citizenship, bought multiple homes, and a job in a parliament.'It's clear you're not happy, so pack your bags and piss off back to Pakistan.'The Federal Court of Australia found in 2024 that Hanson's comments amounted to a 'strong form of racism' in breach of the Racial Discrimination Act, ordering her to delete the post and pay Faruqi's legal costs. Senator Pauline Hanson has emerged as one of Australia's most popular politicians, wooing voters with calls for strict immigration curbs, mass deportations of 'illegal migrants' and enhanced free speech protections Hanson took aim at Pakistan-born Australian lawmaker Mehreen Faruqi (pictured) in 2022 over comments made in the wake of Queen Elizabeth II's deathHanson's appeal against that decision on free speech grounds was dismissed on Monday.'I was incensed by the incredible disrespect that I felt was shown to our late Queen on the day of her death by Senator Faruqi and others,' she said after the court's decision.'I simply wanted to call that out.'For years a political outsider, Hanson's One Nation has surged this year to become one of the country's most popular parties, according to opinion polls.Hanson has pledged sweeping cuts to government spending - akin to Elon Musk's 'DOGE' in the United States - and has urged Australia to rethink its membership of international organisations.Hanson faces a legal bill approaching $2million as she considers a High Court challenge after losing an appeal against a ruling that found she racially discriminated against Greens senator Faruqi.Speaking on Sky News with Peta Credlin on Monday, Hanson's chief of staff James Ashby said the case had already cost between $1.6million and $2million, describing the litigation as an attack on free speech.'We're not happy with the decision. We have to respect it,' he said.Ashby said he received a phone call from a former Federal Court judge after the judgment was handed down.'I received a phone call today from a former Federal Court judge who said the outcome of today's decision was intellectually dishonest and lazy,' he said.'And so I struggle to disagree.'While Ashby acknowledged the unanimous nature of the ruling, he insisted there were still grounds to seek special leave to appeal to the High Court.'It goes without saying there are grounds there to take this now to the High Court,' he said.'Whether they will accept that, we'll find out in six months' time, but we've got a limited amount of time to do it.'