Monday, 28 January 2013

New visa pact, extradition treaty with Bangladesh in offing

New visa pact, extradition treaty with Bangladesh in offing
New DelhiIndia and Bangladesh are all set to sign a liberalised visa agreement and an extradition treaty during a two-day home ministerial meeting in Dhaka on Monday.

Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde, who has reached Dhaka, will have a meeting at 2:30 pm with his Bangladeshi counterpart Muhiuddin Khan Alamgir to discuss about the treaties.

The new visa pact, named Revised Travel Arrangement (RTA), will remove restrictions on visit of each other's businessmen, students, patients, senior citizens above 65 years and children below 12 years on the lines of the liberalised visa regime between India and Pakistan.

According to the proposed visa pact, businessmen will be given five-year multiple entry visa and those who want to travel for medical treatment will get two-year multiple entry visa which is extendable for another year. Visa will be given to three attendants of a patient.

Under the student visa, a person can avail one-year multiple entry travel document.

India has also agreed to waive the 60-day cooling off period for second visit by a Bangladeshi national.

The restriction is at present applicable to citizens of Pakistan, China and some other countries.

The extradition treaty will pave the way for deportation of jailed ULFA 'general secretary' Anup Chetia, Tripura insurgent leader Vishwa Mohan Deb Barman, NDFB leader Thulunga alias Tensu Narzery and many other insurgents from the northeast who have been hiding in Bangladesh.

Similarly, it will also help Dhaka in getting back its criminals who are currently lodged in Indian jails.

India has been pressing for Chetia's deportation since long. The ULFA leader has been in a Dhaka jail following his arrest in 1997 on the charge of entering Bangladesh without valid documents.

He had, however, moved court seeking asylum in Bangladesh for security reason, making it 'legally' difficult for Dhaka to execute New Delhi's demand.

Both the deals are expected to be inked at Ruposhi Bangla Hotel in Dhaka, following which there would be a joint press conference.

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