Pact signed in 1993, but not a single accused handed over by UK

NEW DELHI: Ever since India and the UK signed an extradition treaty in 1993, Britain has not handed over a single fugitive wanted by authorities here. The accused, after escaping to the UK, usually take the plea that the Indian government/agencies were biased towards them. This, and the provision of death penalty in India and the European Commission's provisions on human rights pose major hurdles in their extradition.
According to official figures, some 131 extradition requests for persons wanted by India are pending with the UK. Minister of state for home Kiren Rijiju had even taken up the matter with the UK's minister of state for immigration James Brokenshire during his New Delhi visit in February.
Officials said the reasons cited by British courts and authorities to reject extradition were "insufficient evidence" or "incomplete paperwork".
"Subsequently, extradition is refused usually after the accused takes a plea there that he/she has been charged due to political reasons or vested interest and that he/she is likely to be deprived of human rights in India and could face torture. So many cases have been denied by the UK on the ground that extradition would deny the person the right to family life (Article 8 of the European Convention of Human Rights)," said a senior official.
Recent examples of high profile fugitives whose extradition was rejected by UK courts are Ravi Shankaran, wanted in the naval war room leak case; Tiger Hanif, wanted in connection with two bomb attacks in Gujarat in 1993; and music director Nadeem Saifi, charged and later acquitted in the Gulshan Kumar murder case. The government also made efforts to bring former IPL commissioner Lalit Modi back but failed.