Text of Joint India-US Communique on the Exchange of the
Instruments of Ratification of the Indo-US Extradition Treaty

New Delhi, July 21, 1999

“The Governments of India and the United States today exchanged instruments of ratification for
the bilateral Extradition Treaty which was signed by both countries in June 1997. The exchange
has brought this treaty into force from today.

The new extradition treaty has replaced the 1931 Extradition Treaty between the United States
and the United Kingdom which was, till date, also in force between the United States and India.
The treaty is an important step in India-US law enforcement cooperation and cooperation in the
area of counter-terrorism. This exchange constitutes yet another milestone in the continuing
cooperation between our two democracies to promote the continued growth of our contacts and
exchanges in different areas on the basis of mutual benefit and goodwill.”

Salient Points of the Extradition Treaty
signed between India and the U.S. in June 1997

Extraditable offenses:

The offense is extraditable if punishable under the
laws in both contracting parties by imprisonments
for more than one year or by a more severe pen-
alty. This applies:

a) whether or not the laws in the contracting state
place the offense within the same category of
offenses or describe the offense by the same
terminology;

©) whether or not the office is one for which
United States federal law requires the showing
of such matters as interstate transportation, or
use of the mails or of other facilities affecting
interstate or foreign commerce, such matters
being merely for the purpose of establishing
jurisdiction in a United States federal court; or

c) whether or not it relates to taxation or revenue
or is one of a purely fiscal character.

Extradition shall be granted for an extraditable
offense regardless of where the act or acts consti-
tuting the offense were committed.

While extradition shall not be granted for a politi-
cal offense, the following shall not be considered
to be political offenses:

Murder or other willful crime against a Head of

8 INDIA NEWS © August 15, 1999

Go gle

State or Head of Govemment or a member of their
family, aircraft hijacking offenses, aviation sabo-
tage, crimes against internationally protected per-
sons including diplomats, hostage taking, offenses
related to illegal drugs, or any other offenses for
which both contracting states have the obligation
to extradite the person pursuant to a multilateral
intemational agreement.

Procedures:

All requests for extradition shall be submitted
through the diplomatic channel and be supported
oy required documents, statements, information
describing the facts of the offense, statements of
the relevant provisions of the law regarding the
offense as well as the punishment, a copy of the
warrant or the order of arrest, and such informa-
tion as would justify the committal for trial of the
person in the requested state. For those already
convicted of an offense, extradition request shall
be supported also by a copy of the judgement of
conviction or a statement by a judicial authority
that the person has been convicted.

In case of urgency, a contracting state may request
the provisional arrest the person sought pending
proposal of the request of extradition.