A Danish court on Thursday rejected India’s request for the extradition of Niels Holck alias Kim Peter Davy, accused of involvement in a 29-year-old arms smuggling case. Davy is wanted in the arms drop case in Purulia, West Bengal. However, earlier the Danish government had been rejecting the Indian government’s plea for the extradition of Davy, the main accused in the Purulia case.
On the night of December 17, 1995, a Latvian Antonov AN-26 aircraft flew into Indian airspace and dropped a cache of arms over Jaupur village in Purulia district of West Bengal. The consignment was reportedly meant for an insurgent group in West Bengal. Kim Davy was reportedly the mastermind behind the operation.
India has been demanding extradition for many years
India has been seeking the extradition of Davy for the last several years to stand trial in an Indian court. However, the Danish court rejected India’s request, saying that sending him to India would violate the Danish Extradition Act as he could face torture and other inhumane treatment in India.
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State prosecutor Anders Reichendorf told news agency Reuters it was not yet decided whether the decision would be appealed. According to Davy’s lawyer Jonas Christophersen, the guarantees provided by India were not valid. “It has been six years of negotiating terms between the state prosecutor and India. Now the court has said his safety cannot be guaranteed,” Christophersen told Reuters.
Davy had earlier admitted in a Danish court that he was on board a cargo plane along with six others to smuggle weapons into West Bengal in December 1995. He also admitted that the weapons were meant for people associated with the rebel movement Ananda Marg.
What is the Purulia arms dropping case?
On December 17, 1995, an Antonov An-26 aircraft dropped a consignment in Jaupur. It included hundreds of AK-47 rifles, anti-tank grenades, rocket launchers and over 25,000 rounds of ammunition, allegedly meant for the Ananda Marg, a socio-spiritual organisation with a history of militancy.
The aircraft, operated by a crew led by former British army officer and arms dealer Peter Bleach, was intercepted by Indian Air Force jets while attempting to exit Indian airspace on December 22, 1995. The crew, including five Latvian nationals and Bleach, were arrested and prosecuted.
Also read: When the mud house collapsed in the rain, she made the toilet her place, the story of Mithila Mahato of Purulia, Bengal is painful
Davy had run away
The prime accused, Davy, managed to evade arrest by fleeing from the airport. According to his later statements, he bribed airport officials and fled to Nepal and later returned to Denmark. Davy also claimed that the arms drop was to protect Ananda Marg members from the communist government in West Bengal.
Both Kim Davy and Peter Bleach alleged that the arms drop was known in advance to Indian authorities who were trying to overthrow the communist regime in Bengal. Some theories also suggest that Kim Davy was a CIA ‘dirty asset’ and received protection from Danish authorities because of his ties with the CIA.
Source (PTI) (NDTV) (HINDUSTANTIMES)