4 years on, UK yet to decide on Tiger Hanif’s extradition

HANIF’S CASE IS AN INDICATION OF THE OPPORTUNITIES FOR APPEAL AVAILABLE TO FUGITIVE VIJAY MALLYA

A final representation made by Tiger Hanif, wanted for the 1993 Gujarat blasts, to the British home secretary in 2013 to avoid extradition, is “still under consideration”, official sources told HT on Thursday.

Hanif’s case reflects the difficult situation faced by New Delhi over the years on the issue of extradition. He lost all legal challenges to avoid extradition, and made the final appeal to the home secretary, who is yet to take a decision.

Under Britain’s rules, an extradition request from India needs “decisions by both the secretary of state and the courts”. Hanif’s representation was made when Prime Minister Theresa May was the home secretary, but the incumbent, Amber Rudd, has also not acted on it so far.

Hanif’s case is an indication of the extradition process and opportunities for appeal available to Indian businessman Vijay Mallya, who was arrested and given bail at the Westminster Magistrates Court on Tuesday as part of the process. The next hearing in his case is on May 17.

An aide of underworld don Dawood Ibrahim, Hanif, whose full name is Mohammed Umerji Patel, was traced to a grocery store in Bolton, Greater Manchester, in March 2010. His claim that he would be tortured if sent to India was overruled by the courts.

If the home secretary’s decision comes before the UK leaves the EU (likely by March 2019) and also goes against him, Hanif may approach the European Court of Human Rights, which has been the last recourse of several foreign nationals who face extradition proceedings.

Hanif is wanted in India for his alleged role in a grenade attack on a packed marketplace which killed a schoolgirl in Surat in January 1993.

Under the 1993 India-UK extradition treaty, India has so far extradited three individuals, while one person has been extradited to India.

The three extraditions from India to UK were: Maninder Pal Singh Kohli (Indian citizen), on July 29, 2007, for the murder of Hannah Foster; Somaia Ketan Surendra (Kenyan citizen), on July 8, 2009, in a cheating case; and Kulwinder Singh Uppal (Indian citizen), on November 14, 2013, in a kidnapping and false imprisonment case.

The single extradition from UK to India was of Samirbhai Vinubhai Patel (Indian citizen), on October 18, 2016, in a case related to the 2002 Gujarat riots.