Peerzada Masarat Shah
New Delhi, Aug 4 (BuzzBytes): Taking a decisive stance against fugitive criminals, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the guidance of Union Home Minister Amit Shah, India has brought back 274 fugitive criminals from 36 countries since 2019, the Ministry of Home Affairs said in a revised statement issued on Tuesday. To strengthen action against fugitives, Prime Minister Modi enacted the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act in 2018, and under Shah’s guidance India has developed what the ministry called an integrated, intelligence-based and technology-driven model against fugitives, paving the way for stricter measures and facilitating their return.
Before 2014, the ministry said, the country’s extradition framework had grown outdated, with India holding extradition treaties with only 37 countries and no dedicated law to deal with economic fugitives or confiscate their assets. Between 2004 and 2013, India secured the extradition of only four fugitives a year on average, while 110 extradition requests remained pending. Incomplete documentation and slow processing made the process cumbersome, often leading foreign courts to deny requests, while principles of double jeopardy and dual criminality further complicated matters. The ministry said the absence of effective coordination between the Ministry of Home Affairs and other departments also slowed the sharing of information, location tracking and issuance of Red Corner Notices.
Previous governments, the ministry said, lacked the political will to bring back fugitives; the Modi government has made their extradition a “national priority.” In line with the Prime Minister’s vision, the Home Minister has emphasised a three-pronged strategy: global outreach, strong coordination and smart diplomacy, describing the fugitive issue as intrinsically linked to the country’s sovereignty, economic stability, law and order and national security.
The government enacted the NIA (Amendment) Act and the UAPA (Amendment) Act in 2019, and from 2020 the process of bringing fugitives back was taken up in mission mode, expanding the scope of action beyond proscribed organisations to individual terrorists, handlers, funding networks and support systems based abroad. In 2024 the government implemented three new criminal laws with special provisions for fugitive offenders; for the first time, Sections 355 and 356 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita provide for trial in absentia, allowing the judicial process to be completed even without the accused present.
In 2022, India hosted the 90th Interpol General Assembly, where Shah underscored the three pillars of global policing — communication, collaboration and cooperation. To strengthen coordination between India and global law enforcement, Shah launched BHARATPOL in January 2025, integrating the CBI, State Police Headquarters (through Interpol Liaison Officers) and District Police Headquarters onto a single platform. More than 1,400 units of state and central agencies have since been connected through the portal, and information sought by the CBI is now generally shared by other agencies within 10 to 20 days, and in some cases 3 to 10 days — a sharp improvement from earlier delays. The Home Minister has held five important meetings on this initiative.
The government has enforced the Prevention of Money Laundering Act more rigorously, attaching assets worth Rs 17,874 crore belonging to fugitive criminals between 2019 and 2026. The CBI has established a Special Global Operations Centre coordinating in real time with police agencies worldwide through Interpol, and has designated Interpol Contact Officers in every state and central investigating agency. Interpol Red Corner Notices issued annually have risen sharply — 40 in 2022, 100 in 2023, 107 in 2024, 112 in 2025 and 182 already in 2026 — taking the three-year total to 401. Operation Trishul was launched to geo-locate absconding criminals using satellite inputs, surveillance and digital footprint analysis, tracing fugitives even after they changed names or identities abroad; technology, including video conferencing for court hearings, has also been used to speed up extradition proceedings.
Year-wise data shared by the ministry shows the 274 fugitives returned break down by crime category as: fraud/financial crimes 9; terrorist activity/anti-national activity/narco-terror 17; organised crime/gangsters/extortion 42; murder/robbery/violent crime 62; sexual offences/rape/POCSO 53; narcotics/NDPS/drug trafficking 16; smuggling/fake currency/cyber/contraband 12; human trafficking/kidnapping 18; and other categories 45 — the annual totals rising from 9 in 2019 and 7 in 2020 to 23 in 2021, 40 in 2022, 37 in 2023, 43 in 2024, a peak of 70 in 2025, and 45 so far in 2026 (till July).
Under Shah’s guidance, extradition requests are now prepared in a more professional and standardised manner, with written assurances provided after accounting for the documentary and legal expectations of the requested country. Those brought back include individuals wanted in terrorism, gangster networks, financial offences, narcotics cases, and cases of murder, rape and offences under the POCSO Act. The campaign spans cases involving terrorism, pro-Khalistan extremism, the gangster-terror nexus, narcotics trafficking, cyber fraud and fake currency; the extradition of Tahawwur Hussain Rana from the United States was cited as a significant example of India’s sustained legal and diplomatic effort in pursuing complex terror cases. In matters relating to Jammu and Kashmir specifically, the ministry said fugitives operating from abroad had been used to sustain terrorism, narco-terrorism and cross-border support networks.
The ministry credited the results to credibility, thorough legal preparation, sustained diplomatic persistence and continuous follow-up, driven domestically by close coordination among the Intelligence Bureau, CBI, Research and Analysis Wing, National Investigation Agency, Enforcement Directorate, Ministry of External Affairs, Narcotics Control Bureau, Directorate General of GST Intelligence and state police forces — what it called a true “Whole-of-Government” approach. The constitution of a Standing Focus Group under the IB’s Multi Agency Centre in January 2026 marked a significant institutional step, the ministry said, responsible for prioritising fugitive cases, standardising dossiers, bridging information gaps and providing national-level support to state-initiated cases, since fugitives operating abroad “are not dormant case files” but “live operational threats” requiring sustained, coordinated action—(BuzzBytes)
