India and the United Kingdom have discussed the need to expedite mutual legal assistance and prioritise extradition requests related to several Indian fugitives. Several Indian fugitives including former Kingfisher Airlines promoter Vijay Mallya, arms dealer Sanjay Bhandari, and diamantaire Nirav Modi are based in the UK.
Discussions were held when a high-level delegation from the UK visited CBI headquarters in New Delhi on Monday.
The delegation included Stephen Kavanagh, Executive Director of Police Services, INTERPOL and UK’s candidate for the post of Secretary General of INTERPOL; Christina Scott, Acting High Commissioner of UK to India, Robert Holness from UK National Crime Agency and Sorrel Evans, UK Home Office, a statement from the CBI spokesperson said.
During the visit, the CBI Director Praveen Sood and other senior agency officials held detailed discussions with Kavanagh about enhancing operational collaboration with the UK in various areas of law enforcement, including criminal intelligence sharing and supporting efforts to combat financial crimes, organized crime, terrorism, cybercrime, and other transnational threats.
Both sides shared commitment to addressing global crime threats in a coordinated and effective manner including via INTERPOL channels, the CBI spokesperson said.
“It was reiterated to strengthen bilateral ties and work closely together to address common security challenges effectively including the need for expediting mutual legal assistance and prioritization of extradition requests relating to fugitives,” they added.
The visit marks a significant step towards strengthening international cooperation between the UK and India in combating transnational crime.
Indian agencies are pursuing the extradition of several UK-based Khalistani separatists and wanted terrorist sympathisers.
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