- Friday, February 28, 2025
The court noted that at Delhi’s Tihar prison Bhandari would be at real risk of extortion, threats or actual violence, from other prisoners and officials
By: India Weekly
THE HIGH COURT in London on Friday (28) granted Sanjay Bhandari’s appeal against his extradition to India, where the consultant in the defence sector is wanted to face charges of alleged tax evasion and money laundering.
Lord Justice Timothy Holroyde and Justice Karen Steyn handed down their judgment following hearings in December last year to grant the 62-year-old businessman’s appeal on human rights grounds.
The court has now ordered his “discharge” from the then UK home secretary Suella Braverman’s extradition order to face criminal proceedings in India on the basis of a Westminster Magistrates’ Court ruling in November 2022.
“In our judgment, having regard to all the evidence and information provided on this ground, including the fresh evidence, we conclude that in Tihar prison the appellant (Bhandari) would be at real risk of extortion, accompanied by threatened or actual violence, from other prisoners and/or prison officials,” the judgment notes.
The appeal was granted on the ground that Bhandari’s extradition would not be compatible with his rights under Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).
“The nature of the allegations against him, and the publicity in relation to them in India, are such that he would be perceived (at least) to be a very rich man and therefore a prime target for extortion.
“In view of the extreme overcrowding and very significant level of understaffing in Jail No 3 Tihar prison, it would be very difficult for even the most conscientious of prison officials to protect the appellant from extortion and mistreatment at the hands of other prisoners, including gang members,” the judgment reads.
It adds that the “real risk” faced is not removed by the “assurances” provided by the Indian government.
“It is of vital importance that a sovereign state should ensure any assurances that are given are accurate,” the judges further state, pointing to a discrepancy in the information provided about the condition of the prison cells in Tihar.
Bhandari was subject to two extradition requests: the first certified in June 2020 concerning an allegation of money laundering contrary to India’s Prevention of Money Laundering Act 2002 and the second certified in June 2021 concerning an allegation of wilfully attempting to evade a tax, penalty or interest chargeable or imposable under India’s Black Money (Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets) and Imposition of Tax Act 2015.
Bhandari used to offer consultancy services to defence manufacturers bidding for Indian government contracts through his firm Offset India Solutions. (PTI)
