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Family seeks UAE help to extradite murder accused after 20 years
Nearly 20 years after retired Merchant Navy captain Manmohan Singh Virdi was murdered in Lonavala, his family has urged the UAE Embassy in New Delhi to expedite the extradition of the prime…
Nearly 20 years after retired Merchant Navy captain Manmohan Singh Virdi was murdered in Lonavala, his family has urged the UAE Embassy in New Delhi to expedite the extradition of the prime accused, Hussain Mohammed Shattaf. The victim's brother, Manjit Singh Virdi, has written to the UAE mission saying the extradition process must be completed as a matter of urgency.
The case, registered as FIR No. 46 of 2006, is now pending before the Sessions Court at Wadgaon Maval, Pune. The family says the trial has stalled because Shattaf has not appeared and remains outside India. The Ministry of External Affairs confirmed on August 4 that India's extradition request has been sent to the UAE, which has asked for additional documentation. The Supreme Court restored the murder trial in May 2023 after the Bombay High Court had discharged the accused.
The family claims Shattaf's passport expired in 2021 and that he has been residing illegally in the UAE since then. Manjit Singh Virdi, a senior citizen, said it is his "last wish to see justice done" in his brother's murder case.
Indian Opinion Analysis
The case has been dragging through the courts since 2006. The Supreme Court had to step in last year to reverse a Bombay High Court order that had set the accused free. India and the UAE signed an extradition treaty in 2000, but extradition requests still take years because each side verifies documents and checks the accused's background. Here, the accused's expired passport since 2021 and the claim that he lacks legal status in the UAE could become leverage for Indian authorities. The UAE is now asking for more paperwork, which suggests the request is being treated seriously. The next signal to watch is whether the UAE accepts India's supplemented documents and issues an arrest warrant to hand over Shattaf.
Source: timesnownews.com
This brief was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
