New Delhi: Maninder Pal Singh Kohli on Friday withdrew his petition from the Supreme Court, in which he had challenged a Delhi High Court order clearing his extradition to Britain to face trial for the alleged rape-and-murder of British teenager Hannah Foster.
Kohli's counsel Rajesh Srivastava withdrew the petition after a Supreme Court bench pointed out that the apex court is not the right forum to deal with the issues raised in the petition. Srivastava had earlier argued in the court that the Delhi High Court, while adjudicating Kohli's petition against extradition, "had not properly heard his case on merit."
The Delhi High Court had earlier endorsed an order by Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Kamini Lau, recommending to the Indian government that Kohli be extradited to Britain.
Srivastava said the high court had not addressed his grievances about Lau examining the evidence against his client. He said Lau had made several adverse remarks against Kohli in her order that could prejudice the British court against his client. The high court did not address this issue too, Srivastava said.
He told the bench that he had also questioned the Union Home Ministry's decision to appoint a judicial officer to enquire into Britain's plea to extradite Kohli without seeking prior approval from the Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court.
Referring to Srivastava's arguments, a bench of Justice GP Mathur and PK Balasubramanyam observed that the right forum for these issues to be raised was the high court and he should have raised them through a review petition against its earlier order.
"These issues had to be settled at the high court itself," the SC bench said.
Kohli's complaint against the Union Home Ministry had earlier been rejected by both the high court and the apex court nearly a year ago. Kohli is accused of raping and murdering Foster after kidnapping her March 14, 2003, from a place near her home in Portswood, Southampton, where she had gone on a weekend picnic with her friends.
Foster's body was found two days later and was identified by her mother. A post-mortem examination revealed that she had been raped and strangled. On June 8, Lau had recommended his extradition with the stipulation that he be not hanged if found guilty.
She had also said that his DNA profile, as inferred from samples taken from his wife and children, matched the semen samples found on the body of the deceased Hannah Foster and this further prima facie corroborated his alleged involvement.
Besides the forensic evidence, the lower court had listed other scientific evidence, including closed-circuit TV footage, statements of witnesses and Kohli's behaviour and conduct after the crime to recommend his deportation. Kohli subsequently challenged Lau's order in the high court, which dismissed his plea earlier this month.
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