After two decades of hard and tortuous negotiations, India and Thailand have signed an Extradition Treaty, concluded a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to exchange intelligence related to money laundering and terrorism financing and ratified the Treaty on Transfer of Sentenced Persons, which was concluded in February 2012.
These, along with a slew of pacts, capped the visit of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to Thailand on Thursday. India has reasons to be happy over the outcome of the visit, particularly on the pacts relating to extradition and exchange of intelligence on money laundering and terrorism financing.
Dr. Singh told the media in the presence of his Thai counterpart Yingluck Shinawatra: “Our growing security cooperation received a major boost today. The Extradition Treaty, concluded after two decades of negotiations, and a memorandum on cooperation in anti-money laundering send a major signal of our shared commitment to combating terrorism, organised crime, drug trafficking and counterfeiting.”
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The Extradition Treaty, inked by External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid and Thailand’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Surapong Tovichakchaikul, provides the legal framework for seeking extradition of fugitives, including those involved in terrorism, transnational crimes and economic offences.
It provides for the extradition of any person wanted for trial or for the imposition or enforcement of a sentence by one Contracting State and is found in the territory of the other. Extradition entails surrender of an alleged or convicted criminal by one state to the other.
During talks with his counterpart, Dr. Singh referred to the list of names given by India for extradition from Thailand and he was told that the request would be expedited. Indian officials were not willing to go into the details of those who figured in the list but mentioned the name of Sayed Ahmed Ali Kari alias Munna, who is wanted by the Mumbai police in several cases.
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Social rehabilitation
The Treaty on Transfer of Sentenced Persons enables foreign nationals convicted of a criminal offence to serve the sentence in their own country. It also facilitates their social rehabilitation in their own countries.