"India-Bangladesh Extradition Treaty tested by political offence exception clause"
Political Offence Exception
treaty clause allowing refusal of extradition if the offence is of a political character.
Dual Criminality
extradition principle requiring the act to be an offence in both the requesting and requested state.
India and Bangladesh share one of South Asia's most consequential bilateral relationships, rooted in the 1971 Liberation War in which India provided decisive military, diplomatic, and humanitarian support for Bangladesh's creation. The two countries share a 4,096-km land boundary — one of the world's longest — along with extensive river-water linkages, transit corridors, and deep cultural ties. Bangladesh has been a cornerstone of India's 'Neighbourhood First' policy, which prioritises stable, cooperative relations with immediate neighbours to secure India's strategic periphery and ensure that its northeastern states are not encircled by hostile or unstable territory.
The bilateral institutional architecture is substantial. The India-Bangladesh Extradition Treaty, signed in Dhaka on January 28, 2013, and brought into force on October 23, 2013, provides the legal framework for the surrender of accused persons between the two states on a reciprocal basis. Alongside it, the Ganges Water Treaty (1996) governs sharing of the Ganga/Padma river, the Land Boundary Agreement (2015) resolved a decades-old border enclave dispute, and multiple connectivity projects — rail, road, and inland waterway links — have deepened economic interdependence. Both countries are also members of the BIMSTEC Convention on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters (BIMSTEC MLAT), which provides a multilateral channel for criminal cooperation alongside the bilateral treaty.
The India-Bangladesh Extradition Treaty (2013) operates on the principle of dual criminality — the act for which extradition is sought must constitute an offence in both countries — and reciprocity, meaning each side can request surrender of wanted persons from the other. However, the treaty contains several important exceptions that give the requested state significant discretion.
Article 6, titled the Political Offence Exception, is the most consequential provision in the current dispute. It states that extradition may be refused if the offence is of a political character. Critically, however, the same article carves out serious crimes — murder, kidnapping, and manslaughter — from the political offence exception, meaning these cannot automatically be shielded by invoking political motivation. The ambiguity lies in the treaty's failure to define 'political offence' precisely, leaving substantial interpretive space for the requested state — in this case, India. …
Which of the following statements about 'Exercise Mitra Shakti-2023' are correct?
1.This was a joint military exercise between India and Bangladesh.
2.It commenced in Aundh (Pune).
3.Joint response during counter-terrorism operations was a goal of this operation.
4.Indian Air Force was a part of this exercise.
Select the answer using the code given below:
Consider the following statements about platforms for multilateral co-operation:
1.The 'Colombo Process' is a regional consultative process in which member states take binding decisions by consensus.
2.The 'Abu Dhabi Dialogue' is a voluntary non-binding consultative process among Asian countries of labour origin and destination to facilitate regional cooperation on contractual labour mobility.
3.The 'Global Forum for Migration and Development', created upon the proposal of a former UN Secretary General, is a voluntary forum whose decisions are non-binding in nature.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
With reference to the India-Bangladesh Extradition Treaty (2013), consider the following statements:
1.The treaty came into force on the same date it was signed.
2.Article 6 of the treaty provides for the Political Offence Exception but explicitly excludes murder, kidnapping, and manslaughter from its scope.
3.Article 8 allows either country to refuse extradition if accusations are not made in good faith or in the interest of justice.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Which of the following is the correct length of the land boundary shared between India and Bangladesh?
Assertion (A): Under the India-Bangladesh Extradition Treaty (2013), India retains legal discretion to refuse an extradition request even for offences such as murder.
Reason (R): Article 8 of the treaty allows refusal if the requesting country's accusations are not made in good faith or in the interest of justice, irrespective of the nature of the offence.
The BIMSTEC Convention on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters (BIMSTEC MLAT) is relevant to the India-Bangladesh extradition dispute because it:
Which of the following best describes the 'dual criminality' principle in extradition law?
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