Big win for India: UK court rules Tihar jail poses no risk
New Delhi, Nov 17: A UK court in a landmark ruling has said that the Tihar jail in Delhi is safe to extradite Indian fugitives to. The order was passed in a case relating to cricket match fixing accused Sanjeev Chawla.
The High Court ruled that the Tihar prison complex posed no risk to Chawla. The order was passed after a third assurance given by the Indian government.
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The HC passed the order on an appeal by India against the verdict of the Westminster magistrate court, which had discharged Chawla from extradition proceedings. The case will now back to the magistrate's court for a fresh decision.
Chawla who was born in Delhi, lived in India till 1996 following which he moved to UK on a business visa. His passport had been revoked in 2000. He was granted indefinite leave to remain in the UK in 2003. IN 2005, he obtained a UK passport.
On February 1 2016, Indian made an extradition request to the UK after evidence suggested that Chawla had conspired to fix matches during India's tour of South Africa in 2000.
The order comes at a crucial time when a court in UK is hearing extradition proceedings against Vijay Mallya. He too had cited that the jails in India are unfit to be in. India has sent out a video showing the jail conditions at the Arthur Road prison in Mumbai, where Mallya would be lodged if extradited.
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In Chawla's case, the magistrate court had said that it was satisfied with the evidence against Chawla. However the extradition request was turned down considering the conditions at the Tihar jail. The court concluded that there was a risk of torture.