Extradition of criminals: India
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India's extradition laws
The basics explained
India has extradition treaties with 37 nations, Mar 27 2017: The Times of India
What is extradition?
Extradition is simply the surrender of a criminal to one country by another. It also helps in maintaining the territoriality of the penal code, which says that a country should not apply its criminal law to a person who committed an offence outside its territories except when the crime is related to a particular country's national interest. The process is regulated by treaties between the two countries.
What are the internationally accepted extradition conditions?
There is a general consensus about a few conditions of extradition. The crime should fulfill the criterion of dual criminality it's a punishable offence in both countries. For instance, homosexuality might be a crime in a country while it is accepted in another. In that case, the first country cannot request the second to extradite a person who is charged with a homosexuality related offence. Political criminals are generally not extradited. Some countries refuse to extradite if the kind of expected punishment is abolished or is not administered in their own territories.
How does British extradition law work?
UK has three types of extradition arrangements. The first deals with European arrest warrants, the second applies to countries with which the UK has international extradi tion arrangements and lastly those with which the UK doesn't have extradition treaties or arrangements. India falls in the second category and hence Vijay Mallya will get extradited according to this process if it happens at all. The first step in this process is an extradition request made to the secretary of state, who then decides whether to cer tify the request or reject it. In Mallya's case, the secretary of state has certified his extradition. His case will now go to a district court and if the judge is satisfied that enough information has been provided, he she can issue an arrest warrant which will follow a preliminary hearing succeeded by an extradition hearing. If convinced that the person has committed an offence that qualifies for extradition, the judge rule so. This will then be passed on to the secretary of state who would order extradition. Mallya or the Indian government can go to the high court or Supreme Court if they are not satisfied with the order.
What are India's extradition laws?
In India, the Extradition Act, 1962 regulates the surrender of a person to another country or the request for arrest of a person in a foreign land.The Act specifies a list of extradition offences -an offence provided for in the extradition treaty with that state. The process has to be initiated by the central government. As we have extradition treaties with only 37 countries and extradition arrangements with another 8 countries, where there is no treaty the central government is empowered to take action by releasing a notification and treating any convention to which India and the foreign country are parties as the extradition treaty . If the extradition request has come from two or more countries, the government has the rights to decide which of them is the fittest for the request.
In what situations can the government deny extradition?
If the government finds the case trivial and if it thinks that surrendering of the person is not being made in good faith or in the interests of justice or for political reasons, it can deny the request. If the surrender according to the requesting country's own law is barred by time, the person cannot be extradited from India. If the government feels that the person will be charged with an offence not mentioned in the extradition treaty, it can stop the process. If the person is serving a jail term or is accused of an offence on Indian soil, which is different from the offence for which he or she is wanted abroad, the extradition process can be stopped.
The European Convention on human rights
See graphic.
