{"id":330330,"date":"2025-03-20T18:54:55","date_gmt":"2025-03-20T13:24:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/?p=330330"},"modified":"2025-03-21T12:56:28","modified_gmt":"2025-03-21T07:26:28","slug":"indias-extradition-challenges-and-anti-torture-law-absence","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/indias-extradition-challenges-and-anti-torture-law-absence\/","title":{"rendered":"India’s Extradition Challenges and Anti-Torture Law Absence"},"content":{"rendered":"

Source<\/strong>: The post India’s Extradition Challenges and Anti-Torture Law Absence has been created, based on the article \u201cTorture shadows India<\/strong>\u2019<\/strong>s justice system<\/strong>\u201d published in \u201cThe Hindu<\/strong>\u201d on 20 March 2025. India’s Extradition Challenges and Anti-Torture Law Absence.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"India's<\/p>\n

UPSC Syllabus Topic:<\/strong> GS Paper2- Governance- criminal Justice system<\/p>\n

Context<\/strong>: The King\u2019s Bench Division of the High Court of Justice in London recently denied India\u2019s extradition request for Sanjay Bhandari, citing the risk of custodial torture. Similarly, in the U.S., Tahawwur Rana has appealed to the Supreme Court against his extradition, using similar arguments. These cases highlight India\u2019s failure to enact an anti-torture law, impacting its international reputation and legal credibility.<\/p>\n

Extradition Cases and the Issue of Torture<\/strong><\/h2>\n
    \n
  1. Sanjay Bhandari<\/strong>, wanted in India for tax evasion and money laundering<\/strong>, successfully defended against extradition in the U.K. due to concerns over custodial torture in Indian prisons.<\/li>\n
  2. Tahawwur Rana<\/strong>, accused of involvement in the 26\/11 Mumbai attacks<\/strong>, has used the U.K. judgment to challenge his extradition in the U.S.<\/li>\n
  3. Several other fugitives have used similar arguments, revealing a legal gap that weakens India\u2019s ability to prosecute criminals.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    India<\/strong>\u2019<\/strong>s International and Constitutional Obligations<\/strong><\/h2>\n
      \n
    1. International Treaties<\/strong>: India played a key role in UN General Assembly<\/strong>\u2019<\/strong>s Resolution 32\/64<\/strong> against torture but has not ratified the United Nations Convention Against Torture (UNCAT)<\/strong>.<\/li>\n
    2. Human Rights Commitments<\/strong>: India has ratified the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948)<\/strong> and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1976)<\/strong>.<\/li>\n
    3. Constitutional Mandates<\/strong>: Articles 51(c) and 253<\/strong> mandate respect for international treaties.<\/li>\n
    4. Judicial Interpretations<\/strong>: Supreme Court rulings (e.g., D.K. Basu (1997), Puttaswamy (2017)<\/strong>) uphold protection against torture as part of Article 21<\/strong> (Right to Life and Dignity).<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      Judicial and Legislative Inaction<\/strong><\/h2>\n
        \n
      1. A Select Committee of the Rajya Sabha (2010)<\/strong> and the Law Commission (273rd Report, 2017)<\/strong> recommended an anti-torture law.<\/li>\n
      2. The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC)<\/strong> has also advocated for standalone legislation against torture.<\/li>\n
      3. The Supreme Court<\/strong>, despite recognizing custodial torture as unconstitutional, has not pushed the government to enact an anti-torture law (Ashwani Kumar case, 2019).<\/li>\n
      4. The failure to legislate goes against principles of legal certainty and judicial responsibility, as recognized by international judicial bodies.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        For detailed information on India<\/strong>\u2018<\/strong>s baby step to prevent custodial tortures<\/strong> read this article here<\/a><\/p>\n

        Implications of the Absence of an Anti-Torture Law<\/strong><\/h2>\n
          \n
        1. Weakens Extradition Requests<\/strong>: India\u2019s failure to address torture weakens its legal system and affects its ability to bring fugitives to justice.<\/li>\n
        2. Harms Democracy<\/strong>\u2019<\/strong>s Soft Power:<\/strong> The Guantanamo Bay case<\/strong> showed how torture damages a democracy\u2019s global standing and soft power.<\/li>\n
        3. Damages India<\/strong>\u2019<\/strong>s Global Image<\/strong>: India\u2019s failure to enact an anti-torture law undermines its credibility as a democracy and places it alongside countries that do not uphold human rights, such as Sudan and Angola.,<\/li>\n
        4. Inaction on torture laws reflects the failure of Indian politics<\/strong> to prioritize fundamental human rights.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

          Conclusion<\/strong><\/h2>\n

          The extradition rulings expose India\u2019s weak legal framework on custodial torture, affecting its credibility in international courts. To uphold its democratic values, India must ratify UNCAT and enact a strong anti-torture law. Otherwise, its position as a moral leader and defender of human rights will remain compromised.<\/p>\n

          Question for practice:<\/strong><\/p>\n

          Evaluate how the absence of an anti-torture law in India impacts its extradition requests and international legal credibility.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

          Source: The post India’s Extradition Challenges and Anti-Torture Law Absence has been created, based on the article \u201cTorture shadows India\u2019s justice system\u201d published in \u201cThe Hindu\u201d on 20 March 2025. India’s Extradition Challenges and Anti-Torture Law Absence. UPSC Syllabus Topic: GS Paper2- Governance- criminal Justice system Context: The King\u2019s Bench Division of the High Court… Continue reading India’s Extradition Challenges and Anti-Torture Law Absence<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10320,"featured_media":330411,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1230],"tags":[300,212,10498],"class_list":["post-330330","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-9-pm-daily-articles","tag-governance","tag-gs-paper-2","tag-the-hindu","entry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Indias-Extradition-Challenges-and-Anti-Torture-Law-Absence.png?fit=1280%2C850&ssl=1","views":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/330330","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10320"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=330330"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/330330\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/330411"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=330330"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=330330"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=330330"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}