India, Italy to sign extradition treaty amid improving bilateral ties
NEW DELHI : India and Italy are set to sign an extradition treaty as the two countries seek to repair their bilateral relations that were waylaid by the 2012 killing of two Indian fishermen by Italian marines. The extradition treaty will make it easier for both countries to counter crime and improve cooperation between their law enforcement agencies, said people aware of the developments. The final text of the extradition treaty has been approved by the MEA and the ministry of home affairs, with the law ministry examining it for the Union cabinet’s approval, these people said.
The treaty is significant as the two countries only have a limited extradition arrangement despite India’s large diaspora in Italy. In 2018, Italy had refused to extradite businessman Carlo Gerosa, implicated in the AgustaWestland chopper scandal, to India. The lack of an extradition treaty between the two countries was cited as the reason for not extraditing Gerosa, according to reports.
India’s present extradition arrangement with Italy only covers crimes such as trafficking in narcotics and psychotropic substances as both countries are party to the 1988 UN convention against trafficking in these substances, according to India’s ministry of external affairs. The Italian embassy and India’s ministries of external affairs, home affairs, and law and justice did not immediately reply to emailed queries on the extradition treaty. According to data from the ministry of external affairs, India has extradition agreements with 48 countries, including the US, the UK, Russia, France and Germany.
The oldest extradition agreement was signed with Switzerland in 1880. The Extradition Act of 1962 governs the framework for India’s extradition treaties. These
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