New Delhi, Aug 4: India brought back 274 fugitive criminals from 36 countries since 2019, the government said on Tuesday, as it outlined measures it said had strengthened the country’s efforts to track and extradite suspects wanted for crimes ranging from terrorism to financial fraud.
The government said the effort had been made a national priority under Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah, with agencies adopting an integrated, intelligence-led and technology-driven approach to pursuing fugitives abroad.
It said PM Modi’s government had strengthened the legal framework for dealing with fugitives, including through the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act of 2018.
The government said that before 2014, India’s extradition framework was outdated and the country had extradition treaties with 37 countries.
Between 2004 and 2013, India secured the extradition of an average of four fugitives a year, while 110 extradition requests remained pending, it said.
Incomplete documentation, slow processing and legal hurdles, including the principles of double jeopardy and dual criminality, had often complicated extradition proceedings, the government said.
It also cited a lack of coordination among government departments and delays in information sharing, tracking fugitives and issuing Interpol Red Corner Notices.
The government said the approach changed after 2019, when amendments were made to the National Investigation Agency Act and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. From 2020, efforts to bring fugitives back were pursued on a “mission mode”, it said.
The scope of investigations was also expanded beyond proscribed organisations to include individual terrorists, handlers, funding networks and overseas support systems, according to the government.
In 2024, India introduced three new criminal laws containing provisions relating to fugitive offenders.
Sections 355 and 356 of the BharatiyaNagarikSurakshaSanhita (BNSS) provide for trials in absentia, allowing judicial proceedings against certain accused persons to continue even when they are not present in court.
India hosted the 90th Interpol General Assembly in 2022, where Shah highlighted the importance of communication, collaboration and cooperation in global policing, the government said.
In January 2025, Shah launched BHARATPOL, a platform intended to improve information sharing between the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), state police headquarters and district police headquarters through Interpol Liaison Officers.
More than 1400 units of central and state agencies have since been connected to the platform, the government said.
It said that information requested by the CBI is now generally shared by other law enforcement agencies within 10 to 20 days, and in some cases within three to 10 days.
The government said Shah had held five meetings in this regard.
The government also said authorities had stepped up enforcement of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), attaching assets worth 17,874 crore rupees (USD 2.1 billion) belonging to fugitive criminals between 2019 and 2026.
The CBI has established a Special Global Operations Centre to coordinate with police agencies worldwide through Interpol, while Interpol Contact Officers have been designated in every state and in central investigative agencies, the government said.
The number of Interpol Red Corner Notices issued has also risen, from 40 in 2022 to 100 in 2023, 107 in 2024 and 112 in 2025.
A total of 182 had been issued in 2026 up to the time of the government’s statement, it said.
Over the past three years, Red Corner Notices have been issued against 401 fugitive criminals, the government said.
It also cited “Operation Trishul”, an initiative aimed at locating absconding criminals through satellite inputs, surveillance and analysis of digital footprints, with support from Interpol.
Some fugitives had changed their names or identities while living abroad, but Indian agencies had been able to identify and trace them through technology and profile mapping, the government said.
Video conferencing has also been used in court hearings in some extradition cases to speed up legal proceedings, it said.
The government said extradition requests were now being prepared in a more standardised manner, with written assurances provided after taking into account the legal and documentary requirements of the country where the fugitive was located.
Those brought back include people wanted in terrorism, organised crime, financial offences, narcotics trafficking, murder, rape and offences under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, it said.
The campaign has also covered cases involving pro-Khalistan extremism, the gangster-terror nexus, narcotics trafficking, cyber fraud and counterfeit currency.
The extradition of TahawwurHussainRana from the United States was cited by the government as a significant example of India’s efforts to pursue complex terrorism cases through legal and diplomatic channels.
In Jammu and Kashmir, the government said fugitives operating from abroad had been used to sustain terrorism, narco-terrorism and cross-border support networks.
The government attributed the increase in successful extraditions to legal preparation, diplomatic engagement and sustained follow-up with foreign authorities.
At the domestic level, the effort involves coordination among the Intelligence Bureau (IB), Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW), National Investigation Agency (NIA), Enforcement Directorate (ED), Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), Directorate General of Goods and Services Tax Intelligence (DGGI) and state police forces.
The government described the approach as a “whole-of-government” effort, with central and state agencies working together to pursue fugitives and support criminal proceedings against them.
In January 2026, the Intelligence Bureau’s Multi Agency Centre (MAC) constituted a Standing Focus Group to strengthen the country’s fugitive management framework, the government said.
The group is responsible for prioritising fugitive cases, standardising dossiers, addressing information gaps, maintaining follow-up with foreign partners and providing national-level support to cases initiated by state agencies.
The government said fugitives operating from abroad should not be treated as dormant cases, arguing that they can continue to pose security and operational threats and require sustained, coordinated action.
