UK court orders fugitive Bhandari’s extradition

NEW DELHI: A UK court has ordered the extradition of fugitive arms dealer Sanjay Bhandari to India, the third high-profile extradition case India has won in the UK, after Vijay Mallya and Nirav Modi.

While ordering Bhandari’s extradition and sending the reference to the UK home secretary, district judge Michael Snow at Westminster’s Magistrates’ Court in London, said : “As I am satisfied that extradition is compatible with the defendant’s Convention rights, I must send this case to the Secretary of State (Suella Braverman) for a decision as to whether the defendant is to be extradited”.

“However, I only do so on the basis of the assurances that have been provided by the (Indian) government,” the judge said. The Indian government assured the court that Bhandari will be held in a separate cell at Tihar Jail in New Delhi with adequate access to health care while he faces trial. To be sure, Bhandari has the option to challenge the magistrate court’s decision in the UK high court.

“It’s a big development. Sanjay Bhandari is undoubtedly one of the most wanted fugitives who are wanted for multiple violations. Indian agencies have provided robust evidence related to the financial irregularities, which has been appreciated by the UK courts in back-to-back extraditions of Mallya, Modi and now Bhandari,” said an officer, who didn’t want to be named.

Mallya’s extradition was cleared by the UK high court in April 2020 but has since been held up because he has applied for asylum. A Westminster court ordered Modi’s extradition in February 2021, which he has challenged in the UK high court.

During the proceedings against Bhandari, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) of the UK, which has successfully argued India’s cases, stated that the businessman’s conduct amounts to “fraud by false representation” in British jurisdiction. The charges were described by Bhandari’s legal team as “political witch-hunt” and “baseless”.

Bhandari, 60, is under investigation by multiple agencies, including the Enforcement Directorate, Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Income Tax department and Delhi Police, for money laundering, violation of the Foreign Exchange Act, the Black Money Act, and the Official Secrets Act for having access to sensitive defence documents.