With the case of extradition of an alleged paedophile coming up in a UK court tomorrow, CBI has sought the help of MEA to take up the matter at the highest level with the British government for issuing instructions to its legal services to present a strong case.
CBI Director Ranjit Sinha made this request to Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh after the agency failed to get an interaction with the service counsel of Crown Prosecution Service in connection with the extradition of Raymond Andrew Varley, who allegedly molested hundreds of orphan children in Goa in 1995 at a shelter home run by foreigners.
The extradition has been rejected by Westminster court and appeal has been filed at the High Court of England and Wales which will be heard tomorrow when CBI will file a crucial statement on the need for an independent medical opinion on the mental health of the accused.
CBI, not directly a party in the case, is dependent on the Crown Prosecution Service in the case. The agency provides all the help to CPS to secure extradition of the accused.
The agency sent repeated request seeking interaction with the service counsel through video conference before the crucial hearing so that best possible case could be presented during the appeal but it failed in its effort.
"Michael Omo, Specialist Extradition Prosecutor, Crown Prosecution Service, initially agreed to video-conferencing. But when CBI gave him various dates he has not agreed for a video conference," an official source said.
Varley's extradition was cleared by the UK government but he approached Westminster court against the decision. His extradition was turned down by the court on a solitary ground that the accused was suffering from dementia.
The agency sources said Varley produced opinion from a private doctor to claim that he was suffering from dementia but the CPS did not challenge the move or sought for an independent medical opinion on the his mental health.
