Jassi murder accused to be extradited from Canada

Jupinderjit Singh

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 17

The Canada government may extradite mother and uncle of alleged honour killing victim Jaswinder Kaur Jassi to India within a few weeks to face trial of hatching conspiracy of her murder.

News reports emanating from Canada quoted the country’s Federal Department of Justice saying that the accused duo — Jassi's mother Malkiat Kaur Sidhu and uncle Surjit Singh Badesha — have no further appeal left against the extradition. As per different news portals, the accused had time till January 10 to file an appeal but they could not do so.

“Canada is now in a position to fulfil the extradition request from India regarding Sidhu and Badesha. Appropriate arrangements will be made for their safe transfer to India,” the Federal Department of Justice said to the Canadian media in the news reports.

However, the Punjab Police are yet to receive an official intimation from the Canadian government. “We will send a team through the Central Bureau of Investigation, which handles the extradition cases,” said a senior Punjab Police official. The official said a team would be sent only after receiving green signal from Canada as a Punjab Police team sent to Canada in September last year returned empty-handed.

The three-member team had reached Canada for bringing the accused back to India but the accused managed to get a stay at the last minute. The Punjab Police official said they would send a team when there was no chance for a further stay on the extradition.

It has been nearly 18 years since Jassi was murdered by a group of contract killers, led by a Punjab Police Inspector. Jassi's husband Sukhwinder Singh Mithu survived the attack.

The extradition process effectively started in 2007.