Setback for arms consultant, Delhi HC upholds ‘fugitive offender’ tag | India News
New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Thursday upheld a trial court’s order declaring UK-based arms consultant Sanjay Bhandari a “fugitive economic offender” in a money laundering case. Justice Neena Bansal Krishna found no merit in the appeal filed by the fugitive and dismissed it. In July 2025, a trial court declared Bhandari a “fugitive economic offender” on a petition by the ED, enabling the agency to confiscate all Bhandari’s assets. However, his chances of coming to India were virtually ruled out after a UK court ruled against his extradition. Bhandari’s legal team claimed that he was “legally residing there (in the UK) and it would be legally wrong to declare him a ‘fugitive’ in those circumstances”. The trial court stated that the extradition attempt may fail, but this “will not absolve the accused from prosecution for violation of the Angels or Indian Acts”.
