Lok Sabha Question No. 4647 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-03-28
Subject: Undertrial Prisoners in Foreign Jails
Ministry: EXTERNAL AFFAIRS
Asked by: Shri Sanjay Haribhau Jadhav, Shri Omprakash Bhupalsinh Alias Pavan Rajenimbalkar, Shri Arvind Ganpat Sawant

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF EXTERNAL AFFAIRS

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO- 4647

ANSWERED ON- 28/03/2025

## UNDERTRIAL PRISONERS IN FOREIGN JAILS

## 4647. SHRI SANJAY HARIBHAU JADHAV

SHRI OMPRAKASH BHUPALSINH ALIAS PAVAN RAJENIMBALKAR

## SHRI ARVIND GANPAT SAWANT

Will the Minister of EXTERNAL AFFAIRS be pleased to state :-

(a) whether   the   Government   has   taken   cognizance   of   undertrial prisoners including convicted Indian nationals, workers and women languishing in foreign jails;

(b) if so, the details thereof during the last five years till date, countrywise;

(c) the names of the States to which these prisoners belong;

(d)   whether   the   Government   has   signed   any   MoU   with   any   other country for mutual exchange of prisoners during the last five years; and

(e) if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF EXTERNAL AFFAIRS (SHRI KIRTI VARDHAN SINGH)

(a) to (c) As per the information available with the Ministry, the number of Indian prisoners, including under-trials, in foreign prisons at present is 10,152. Country-wise list is placed at Annexure A.

However, due to strong privacy laws prevailing in many countries, the local  authorities   do   not   share   information   on   prisoners   unless   the person concerned consents to the disclosure of such information. Even   countries   which   share   information   do   not   generally   provide detailed   information   about   the   foreign   nationals   imprisoned.   The number of Indians in foreign jails is a dynamic figure as there are a number of arrests and releases every week.

(d)   &   (e)   While   the   Government   has   not   signed   MoU   for   mutual exchange of prisoners during the last five years, it has altogether 31 bilateral Agreements on Transfer of Sentenced Persons by virtue of which Indian prisoners lodged in foreign countries can be transferred to India to serve the remainder of their sentence and vice-versa. These are with Australia, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Brazil, Bulgaria,   Cambodia,   Egypt,   Estonia,   France,   Iran,   Israel,   Italy, Kazakhstan, Republic of Korea, Kuwait, Maldives, Mauritius, Mongolia, Qatar,   Russia,   Saudi   Arabia,   Somalia,   Spain,   Sri   Lanka,   Thailand, Turkiye, United Arab Emirates (UAE), United Kingdom and Vietnam. India   has   also   signed   two   multilateral   conventions   on   Transfer   of Sentenced   Persons,   namely   Inter-American   Convention   on   Serving Criminal   Sentences   Abroad   and   Council   of   Europe   Convention   on Transfer of Sentenced Persons, by virtue of which sentenced persons of member States and other countries which have acceded to these conventions can seek transfer to their native countries to serve the remainder of their sentence.

## Annexure A

|   Sr. No. | Country           |   Total number of Indians under trail and convicted in Foreign Jails at present |
|-----------|-------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
|         1 | Afghanistan       |                                                                               8 |
|         2 | Angola            |                                                                               2 |
|         3 | Argentina         |                                                                               1 |
|         4 | Armenia           |                                                                              39 |
|         5 | Australia         |                                                                              27 |
|         6 | Azerbaijan        |                                                                              10 |
|         7 | Bahrain           |                                                                             181 |
|         8 | Bangladesh        |                                                                               4 |
|         9 | Belarus           |                                                                               9 |
|        10 | Belgium           |                                                                               1 |
|        11 | Bhutan            |                                                                              69 |
|        12 | Brunei Darussalam |                                                                               6 |
|        13 | Cambodia          |                                                                              22 |
|        14 | Canada            |                                                                              23 |
|        15 | Chile             |                                                                               1 |
|        16 | China             |                                                                             173 |
|        17 | Congo             |                                                                               5 |
|        18 | Cote d' Ivoire    |                                                                              14 |
|        19 | Croatia           |                                                                               3 |
|        20 | Cuba              |                                                                               2 |
|        21 | Cyprus            |                                                                              21 |
|        22 | Denmark           |                                                                               1 |
|        23 | Egypt             |                                                                               1 |
|        24 | Ethiopia          |                                                                               4 |
|        25 | France            |                                                                              45 |
|        26 | Georgia           |                                                                              45 |
|        27 | Germany           |                                                                              25 |
|        28 | Guatemala         |                                                                               2 |
|        29 | Guinea            |                                                                               2 |
|        30 | Indonesia         |                                                                              21 |

|   31 | Iran              |   18 |
|------|-------------------|------|
|   32 | Iraq              |    1 |
|   33 | Ireland           |    5 |
|   34 | Israel            |    4 |
|   35 | Italy             |  168 |
|   36 | Jamaica           |    1 |
|   37 | Japan             |    6 |
|   38 | Jordan            |   28 |
|   39 | Kazakhstan        |    3 |
|   40 | Kenya             |    4 |
|   41 | Kuwait            |  387 |
|   42 | Kyrgyzstan        |    4 |
|   43 | Laos              |    6 |
|   44 | Lebanon           |    2 |
|   45 | Lithuania         |    1 |
|   46 | Madagascar        |    1 |
|   47 | Malawi            |    1 |
|   48 | Malaysia          |  338 |
|   49 | Maldives          |   10 |
|   50 | Mali              |    1 |
|   51 | Malta             |    5 |
|   52 | Mauritius         |   10 |
|   53 | Mexico            |    1 |
|   54 | Morocco           |    2 |
|   55 | Mozambique        |    5 |
|   56 | Myanmar           |   27 |
|   57 | Nepal             | 1317 |
|   58 | Nigeria           |    3 |
|   59 | North Macedonia   |    5 |
|   60 | Oman              |  148 |
|   61 | Pakistan          |  266 |
|   62 | Philippines       |   44 |
|   63 | Poland            |    7 |
|   64 | Qatar             |  611 |
|   65 | Republic of Korea |    4 |
|   66 | Russia            |   27 |
|   67 | Rwanda            |    3 |

| 68   | Saudi Arabia        |   2633 |
|------|---------------------|--------|
| 69   | Senegal             |      5 |
| 70   | Serbia              |      4 |
| 71   | Singapore           |     92 |
| 72   | South Africa        |      8 |
| 73   | Spain               |     34 |
| 74   | Sri Lanka           |     98 |
| 75   | Switzerland         |      1 |
| 76   | Tajikistan          |      1 |
| 77   | Thailand            |     37 |
| 78   | Trinidad and Tobago |      1 |
| 79   | Turkiye             |      3 |
| 80   | UAE                 |   2518 |
| 81   | Uganda              |     11 |
| 82   | United Kingdom      |    288 |
| 83   | USA                 |    169 |
| 84   | Uzbekistan          |      3 |
| 85   | Vietnam             |      4 |
| 86   | Zimbabwe            |      1 |
|      |                     |  10152 |

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