India and UK have signed two agreements on the return of the illegal Indian migrants and sharing criminal records and intelligence.
- The pact was signed by Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju and UK Minister of State for Immigration Caroline Nokes in Britain.
- The development comes close on heels of India seeking Britain’s help in the early extradition of liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya from Britain to face the law at home.
- He has been charged with cases of fraud and money laundering. He is wanted in India to stand trial on charges of not repaying loans of around Rs 9,000 crore to various banks.
- The new deals reflect increase cooperation between the two countries.
- An MoU on criminal records exchange will lead to British and Indian law enforcement bodies sharing criminal records information and assist the police in protecting the public from known criminals.
- It will also allow the courts in both the countries to access more information to support tougher sentencing decisions.
- The Memorandum of Understanding comes ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s proposed visit to the UK in March.
- Issues of visas for dependents and students, social security, distressed Indian women and extradition were also discussed.
- The British authorities will first identify the illegal migrants, inform the Indian authorities, followed by police verification back home.
- If the claims of the British authorities are found to be correct, then the travel documents of the person concerned will be readied and he/she deported by the UK authorities. This process will have a timeline of one month.
Expected Questions
With which country has India signed MoU on the return of the illegal Indian migrants?
a. USA
b. UK
c. Pakistan
d. Bhutan
