A Tamil asylum seeker has been taken off a commercial flight – and his forced relocation postponed – because of an onboard protest by other passengers.



It is the second time in two months the planned forced movement of an asylum seeker has been abandoned because of demonstrations on board a plane.



On Monday, immigration staff were taking a 25-year-old Tamil asylum seeker on a Qantas flight from Melbourne to Darwin, ahead of his expected deportation.



The man had been previously been living in the community but was recently re-detained.



He has told immigration officials he fears being tortured upon being returned to Sri Lanka.



UK’s high court, international media, and human rights organisations have consistently raised concerns over Tamil asylum seekers being tortured upon return to Sri Lanka.



The asylum seeker was found by Australian authorities not to raise protection obligations.



On Monday, the Tamil man was seated on the plane, flanked by security officers, when one protester, who held a ticket for the flight, stood up and began telling other passengers about the man’s situation and his fears of being returned.



“After it was explained to the passengers what was happening and that [the asylum seeker] was on the flight, two passengers stood up and refused cabin staff instructions to buckle up. They were escorted off the plane by the staff,” demonstrator Jasmine Pilbrow said.

“Police officers then came and spoke to me. I left the plane after they decided to take [the asylum seeker] off the plane. I walked off behind him.”

The asylum seeker has been taken back to detention in Melbourne, where he says he is “fine”.

A Department of Immigration spokeswoman said the flight was a “routine transfer … not a deportation” that was interrupted by protesters. The flight was delayed about 50 minutes.

“Due to the action of these protesters, the transfer did not proceed and some passengers were inconvenienced as a result. This was an unfortunate incident and the department will continue with plans to transfer this detainee.”

It is the second time in two months a planned forced movement of an asylum seeker has been thwarted by protest.

In December, the deportation of a Chinese national was abandoned when other passengers on the plane stood up in protest at his forced removal, and the pilot refused to leave Sydney airport until the man was removed.

The man remains in detention at Villawood in Sydney and legal avenues are being pursued to appeal his deportation.

It has been a visible 24 hours of protest against Australia’s asylum policies.

At the men’s final of the Australian Open tennis tournament, refugee advocates unfurled a banner at one end of the court that read “Australia Open for refugees” and “#shutdownmanus”.

Six protesters in the grandstand wearing shirts with similar slogans were evicted from the stadium, and two women who jumped on court were arrested.

The players, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray, were not approached or harmed.

And on Monday morning, four activists protesting against Australia’s offshore detention of asylum seekers were arrested after they climbed on to the roof of the prime minister’s Sydney electorate office.

The four protesters hung a banner reading “Hunger for justice” over the side of the building, before police climbed up to evict and arrest them.

The group is part of a broader protest movement of several hundred people who are engaged in a rolling hunger strike in solidarity with 15 asylum seekers in Darwin currently refusing all food and water.

One Iranian man, Martin, who is being held in indefinite detention, is reportedly close to death after weeks without eating.

It is understood the three protest groups over the last 24 hours are loosely aligned, if not directly linked.