Question

What is the Extradition Act, 1962 — name a key procedure?

Hint:

Always remember: Extradition Act = dual criminality + magisterial inquiry + Central Government’s final surrender decision.

Answer 1

Step 1: What triggers the process.
A foreign state sends an extradition request to India, and the Central Government checks that a treaty exists or issues a notification under Section 3 of the Extradition Act, 1962.

Step 2: The magistrate gets involved.
Under Section 5, the Central Government does not decide alone. It asks a Judicial Magistrate to hold an inquiry, much like a committal proceeding under ordinary criminal procedure.

Step 3: What the magistrate checks.
Under Section 7, the magistrate checks three things: is the act a crime in India too (dual criminality), is there enough evidence for a prima facie case, and does any bar apply, such as a political offence or a real risk of unfair treatment.

Step 4: Final Answer.
If the magistrate is satisfied, the person is committed to custody and the file goes back to the Central Government, which then passes the surrender order. This magisterial inquiry, sitting between the foreign request and the final handover, is the key procedure under the Act.

Answer 2

Strip away the section numbers and the extradition process reduces to three questions India has to answer before it hands anyone over to a foreign government.

First, does India owe this State an obligation at all?
That comes from a bilateral treaty, or from a notification extending the Act under Section 3. No treaty and no notification means there is no request worth entertaining in the first place.

Second, is there a real case here, not just an accusation?
This is answered by the Magistrate's inquiry, ordered by the Central Government under Section 5 and carried out under Section 7. The Magistrate is not deciding guilt. The Magistrate is checking whether the conduct is criminal here as well as there, whether the evidence clears the prima facie bar, and whether the request is a genuine criminal matter rather than a disguised political one.

Third, should India still refuse even if the case is made out?
Even a strong prima facie case can be blocked, for instance if the offence is political in character or if surrender would expose the person to torture or unfair treatment abroad.

Which of these three is the procedure the question is pointing to?
The first and third steps are largely paper checks. The second step, the Magisterial Inquiry, is where an independent judicial authority actually tests the request before any person is surrendered, which is why it stands out as the key procedure in the Act.

So the answer to the question is the judicial screening built into Sections 5 to 7. \[ \boxed{\text{The Magisterial Inquiry under Sections 5-7 is the decisive procedural check in the extradition process.}} \]