Extradition Lawyer in Mumbai: Courts, Arrests and Deadlines

Which Mumbai court is actually responsible?

The Chief Metropolitan Magistrate’s establishment at Esplanade, Fort, is part of Mumbai’s metropolitan magistracy, alongside other metropolitan magistrate courts. The published official directory also lists magistrate courts at Ballard Pier, Mazgaon/Sewree, Girgaon, Dadar, Mumbai Central, Vikhroli, Kurla, Mulund, Bandra, Borivali, Vile Parle and Andheri; use the actual production or remand order, not the nearest address, to identify the assigned forum. That does not make Esplanade an automatic national extradition court. For a Chapter II case, section 5 allows the Central Government to direct a magistrate who would have had local jurisdiction if the alleged offence had occurred within that magistrate’s area; sections 6 and 7 govern the warrant and inquiry. Chapter III cases involving an endorsed foreign warrant follow a different route, including section 17. Ask for the actual designation order or endorsed warrant before assuming which magistrate will hear the inquiry.

Section 23 is a narrow special rule, not a general airport-arrest rule. It concerns an alleged extradition offence committed aboard a vessel on the high seas or an aircraft while in the air outside India or Indian territorial waters, where the vessel or aircraft later comes into an Indian port or aerodrome. A passenger stopped at Mumbai airport for an offence allegedly committed elsewhere does not fall within that provision merely because the stop occurred at an airport.

Stopped at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport?

An INTERPOL Red Notice is an alert, not itself an Indian arrest warrant. In Bhavesh Jayanti Lakhani v State of Maharashtra (Supreme Court of India, 7 August 2009, Criminal Appeal arising from SLP (Crl.) No. 6407/2008), the Supreme Court set aside the Bombay High Court’s contrary decision of 11 August 2008. The case involved an Indian citizen and no formal US extradition request had been received. The Court held that, on those facts, a Red Notice alone could not justify bypassing Indian law and that the Bombay High Court should have considered the challenge rather than dismissing it. The judgment does not invalidate a separate lawful Indian warrant, immunise a person from lawful arrest or decide every later extradition request. If detention appears to rest only on a notice, ask promptly for the Indian warrant, statutory authority and custody record.

The first 72 hours: an action plan, not an extradition deadline

This is a practical checklist, not a special statutory 72-hour period. Article 22(1) of the Constitution protects the right to be informed of the grounds of arrest and to consult a lawyer. Article 22(2) ordinarily requires production before the nearest magistrate within 24 hours, excluding necessary travel time, and prohibits further detention without a magistrate’s authority. Constitutional exceptions include an enemy alien and preventive detention. First production is not necessarily the section 7 extradition inquiry.

Keep three statutory clocks separate. Section 34B(1) is a provisional-arrest route: after an urgent foreign request, the Central Government may ask the competent magistrate to issue a provisional warrant. Under section 34B(2), discharge is required after 60 days from that arrest if no request for surrender or return has been received; this is not a universal detention limit. Under section 9(3), a person arrested on a warrant issued under section 9 must not be detained for more than three months from arrest unless the Central Government makes an order under section 5 within that period. Under section 24, if a person committed to prison to await surrender has not been conveyed out of India within two months after committal, the High Court may order discharge on application, after proof that reasonable notice of the intention to apply was given to the Central Government, unless sufficient cause is shown. The correct High Court cannot be chosen from the airport location alone: check the committal/custody order and the court’s territorial jurisdiction; Bombay High Court is not automatically the forum for every stage. In Murugesan Manivannan v Union of India (Delhi High Court, 9 September 2026), the court ordered discharge after the Union stated it did not intend to extradite the person and had referred the matter for prosecution in India; this fact-specific, non-binding decision does not make release automatic in Mumbai. Calculate each period from the relevant arrest or committal record, not the airport stop alone.

Where is the person held, and who can help the family?

Maharashtra Prisons lists Mumbai Central Prison and Byculla District Prison in its Southern Region. This does not prove a detainee has been transferred to either: the person may remain in police custody, be held elsewhere under a remand order or be moved after a court direction. Ask the arresting agency or counsel to verify the present place of custody and prisoner reference before travelling or sending documents.

The Maharashtra State Legal Services Authority lists Mumbai District Legal Services Authority at Mazgaon (telephone 8591903601) and Mumbai Suburban DLSA at Old Bandra Court Compound, Bandra West (8591903602). Contact the authority serving the person’s actual location and ask about eligibility and assignment; legal aid is not automatic because the case is international. Directory details can change, so check the linked official pages. Request an interpreter where needed, record medical or accessibility needs, and keep copies of arrest, production and remand papers. Do not assume a language, visit slot or prison placement without confirmation.

Which local court should be approached next?

Use the warrant, production/remand order and any Central Government designation to identify the magistrate actually handling the inquiry; the section 7 inquiry/report is separate from the Central Government’s section 8 surrender decision, and Bombay High Court is a possible forum only where the challenged act falls within its jurisdiction. For country-wide procedure, remedies and deadlines, see Extradition from India and How to Stop Extradition from India.

What should the family or foreign lawyer send?

• Identity: passport name, nationality, alternative spellings, recent photograph and a reliable family contact.
• Arrest trail: flight and terminal, agency or police station, exact time, arrest memo, warrant, production order, custody location and next hearing date if known.
• Foreign case: requesting state, court and case number, alleged offence dates, foreign warrant or judgment, and confirmation that a formal request was sent to India if available.
• Access needs: language for an interpreter, urgent medical or accessibility needs, consular-contact request and safe instructions for contacting counsel.
• Document control: legible copies, dates and source of each paper; list missing documents rather than assuming an authority received them.

Hypothetical example. A business traveller arrives from Dubai at CSMIA Terminal 2 and is stopped after a foreign Red Notice match. Her sister hears only that she was taken to a police station. First, use the airport directory to identify the likely agency, obtain the legal basis for detention and production order, and locate the hearing. Do not assume Esplanade is the assigned extradition court or that the section 34B 60-day clock applies without checking whether the arrest was made under section 34B(1).

Before the next hearing: three distinctions that prevent mistakes

An airport stop is not necessarily extradition: immigration action, a Look Out Circular, deportation and extradition may involve different powers. A custody order is not the final surrender decision, and a magistrate’s report is not the Central Government’s section 8 warrant. The court controlling the challenged act matters more than the place where the flight landed. Obtain the actual order, identify its author and check the next date before choosing a remedy or assuming surrender is stayed.

Hypothetical example: If a passenger is stopped at CSMIA and the family has only a Red Notice printout, do not treat it as an Indian arrest warrant or assume the section 34B 60-day clock has started. Request the Indian warrant and first production/remand order, then check whether the arrest is expressly under section 34B(1) and which magistrate has the case.

Lex Extradition can coordinate a cross-border case assessment with independently instructed local counsel. Use the confidential enquiry form to contact the team. This page is general information, not advice on an individual case.