Actually, there are many important aspects behind this related to international law, extradition process and Indian immigration rules, which are important to understand. According to a senior officer associated with airport security, the Luthra brothers were detained by local security agencies in Bangkok and handed over to the Indian nodal agency. Since the law there is applicable in Bangkok, hence he could not be arrested there on the basis of Indian law. He said that when an accused is caught abroad, he is detained under the law and international agreements of that country. Until brought to India, it is not formally considered within the ambit of the Indian judicial process.
Until the immigration process is completed,…
He said that under international protocol, to show the arrest of any accused in India, it is necessary that he has entered the Indian border. The accused may have been under surveillance by Indian authorities during the flight, but he is technically still considered to be in transit. Despite the plane entering Indian air space, the accused cannot be arrested until he completes the immigration process at the Indian airport and enters the Indian territory. Let us tell you here that even though the airport is on Indian soil, the area from the boarding gate to the immigration counter cannot technically be considered Indian border area.
The accused can make serious allegations in the court
This is the reason why it is not legally possible to show the arrest in flight or before immigration. If this is done, the accused can later argue in the court that his arrest was illegal, because at that time he had not come under Indian jurisdiction. In such cases, even a small procedural lapse can weaken the entire case. He said that the immigration process is a very important link in this entire matter. As soon as the accused reaches India and takes clearance from the immigration counter, he officially enters the Indian border. Immediately after this, the concerned agency can arrest the accused and this arrest is considered completely legal.
How did Luthra Brothers get arrested?
The same procedure was followed in the case of Luthra Brothers also. Handover of Luthra Brothers took place in Bangkok. After this he was brought to IGI Airport in Delhi under the surveillance of Indian security agencies. After the completion of the immigration process at IGI Airport, both the accused were handed over to Goa Police. After completion of this process, Goa Police arrested both of them. After this, medical examination, arrest memo and other legal formalities were completed, so that the law was not violated at any level.
