New visa pact, extradition treaty with Bangladesh in offing

NEW DELHI: A liberalised visa agreement and an extradition treaty are likely to be signed by India with Bangladesh during Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde's two-day visit to Dhaka beginning Monday.

The new visa pact, named revised travel arrangement, will remove restrictions on visit of each other's businesspersons, students, patients, senior citizens above 65 years and children below 12 years on the lines of the liberalized visa regime between India and Pakistan.

"We hope, both the treaties will be signed during the Home Minister's visit to Bangladesh," a Home Ministry official said today.

The extradition treaty, if signed, 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 Nargery, 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 militant 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 on security reason, making it 'legally' difficult for Dhaka to execute New Delhi's demand.