In the past seven years, 274 fugitive criminals have been brought back from 36 countries.

Since 2019, 274 fugitives have been brought back to India from 36 countries, including the extradition of Tahawwur Hussain Rana from the US.
The Ministry of Home Affairs said on Tuesday that after the enactment of the law on fugitive economic offenders, a coordinated, intelligence-based, and technology-driven model has been developed in the country to deal with fugitives, making it easier to bring them back. The fugitives who have been brought back include terrorists, gangsters, economic offenders, narcotics accused, and those wanted in cases of murder, rape, and POCSO. The campaign to bring back fugitives has spread to terrorism, pro-Khalistan extremism, gangster-terrorist convergence, narcotics, cyber fraud, and counterfeit currency. The extradition of Tahawwur Hussain Rana from the US is a major example of India's determination and patient legal and diplomatic efforts in complex terrorism cases.
In cases related to Jammu and Kashmir, fugitives based abroad were being used to run terrorism, narco-terrorism, and cross-border supported networks. The establishment of a Standing Focus Group under the Multi-Agency Centre of the Intelligence Bureau in January this year is also an important institutional step.
According to the Ministry, before 2014, the laws related to extradition were old, and India had extradition agreements with only 37 countries. There was no separate law to catch and confiscate the property of fugitive economic offenders. Between 2004 and 2013, on average, only four fugitives were extradited every year, while 110 requests were pending.
The Ministry said that there was a lack of political will to bring back fugitives in the previous governments, while the Modi government has made the extradition of fugitives a 'national priority'. The government has emphasized three things - global campaign, strong coordination, and smart diplomacy - to bring back fugitives and has linked the issue of fugitives to the country's sovereignty, economic stability, peace, and national security.
In 2019, the government brought the National Investigation Agency Amendment Act and the UAPA Amendment Act, and after 2020, the process of bringing back fugitives was taken forward in 'mission mode'. This has expanded the scope of action beyond organizations to individual terrorists, handlers, funding networks, and support systems based abroad.
In 2024, the government enacted three new criminal laws, which included special provisions related to fugitives. For the first time, the provision of 'trial in absentia' has been included in sections 355 and 356 of the Indian Penal Code, which will allow the entire process of trial to be completed even in the absence of fugitives.
In 2022, India hosted the 90th Interpol General Assembly, where Union Home Minister Amit Shah gave the message of "connectivity, coordination, and cooperation" in global policing. To increase coordination, contact, and dialogue between India and global agencies, Mr. Shah launched 'Bharat Pole' in January 2025 to connect all law enforcement agencies in the country with Interpol.
The government has strictly enforced the law against money laundering, and as a result, properties worth Rs 17,874 crore of fugitives have been attached from 2019 to 2026. Between 2019 and 2026, Rs 18,762 crore has been recovered, including the money of economic offenders who fled the country.
The CBI has set up special global operational centers to catch fugitives at the international level. These centers are in real-time contact with police around the world through Interpol. The CBI has appointed Interpol liaison officers in every state and central investigative agency for rapid exchange of information.
The number of Red Corner Notices issued through Interpol has also increased. 40 Red Corner Notices were issued in 2022, 100 in 2023, 107 in 2024, 112 in 2025, and 182 so far in 2026. Operation Trishul was launched to track the geo-location of fugitives. Under this, the location of hidden criminals was detected on the basis of satellite, surveillance, and digital footprint with the help of Interpol.
Fugitives had changed their names or identities abroad, but they were still found using technology and profile mapping. Technologies like video conferencing for hearing cases are also being used to speed up the extradition process. Red Corner Notices have been issued against 401 fugitives in the last three years.