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Alleged cricket bookie Sanjeev Chawla’s extradition from UK to India likely on Wednesday night
The European Court of Human last week refused to intervene and earlier Sanjeev Chawla was refused permission to appeal during a hearing on January 16. The relevant order to extradite him within 28 days was passed on January 23.
Suspected cricket bookie Sanjeev Chawla is set to be extradited to India within 24 hours after he exhausted options to resist it. He is wanted in India to face charges of match-fixing during South Africa’s tour in 2000.
It will be India’s first successful extradition since the treaty was signed with the UK in 1992. The only previous instance of extradition was voluntary: Samirbhai Vinubhai Patel, who was wanted in a case related to the 2002 Gujarat riots, agreed to be extradited in October 2016.
He will be extradited “possibly tonight”, officials familiar with the extradition procedure on Wednesday.
The European Court of Human last week refused to intervene and earlier Chawla was refused permission to appeal during a hearing on January 16. The relevant order to extradite him within 28 days was passed on January 23.
A team of Delhi police is here to escort him to India, where he is listed to be lodged in the Tihar Jail. New Delhi submitted three sovereign assurances to court about his safety in the jail.
According to court records, India sought Chawla’s extradition due to his alleged criminal conduct between January and March 2000. It was discovered when law enforcement agencies undertook telephone tapping in an unrelated investigation.
“The telephone tapping is alleged to have revealed plans to fix the outcome of forthcoming cricket matches between the touring South African and the Indian test cricket teams. The agreements allegedly reached included the number of runs that would not be exceeded by the South African team in both of their innings in a particular match”, the records state.
The conduct was contrary to the Indian Penal Code and would amount to a conspiracy to agree or give corrupt payments in England and Wales, satisfying the requirement that the offence for which a person is sought is an offence in both countries.
Delhi-born Chawla moved to the UK in 1996. India made the extradition request on February 1, 2016 and it certified by the Home secretary March 11, 2016. His case was initially heard by the Westminster magistrates court and later by the high court.
