ABU DHABI, (Pakistan Point News - 21st Jan, 2020) It took a long time but it has finally been reached a new milestone in the UAE-India judicial cooperation system. This week, India announced that it will execute the verdicts of the UAE civil courts in matters of civil and financial nature.
In an editorial on Tuesday, UAE newspaper Gulf news said that "Though an initial agreement was signed between the two countries in this regard in 1999, the reciprocating territory status for the UAE did not become a formal article of law due to certain pending matters and it is not a day sooner that India has closed the gaps. The list of superior courts in the UAE whose verdicts will be valid in India cover all the emirates and this is a clear indication of how serious the two countries are about combating this issue."
It added, "Given the historic bond of mutual respect and understanding between the two countries, a bond that has been steadily gaining in depth with each passing decade, absconding from financial crime has been a lingering issue. There should be no safety cover for individuals who escape the law smug in the knowledge that legal loopholes will offer them refuge. Indeed, a lack of reciprocity is one of the biggest issues with the world of crime and punishment."
"With this agreement, the UAE and India have closed the escape route," the paper further noted.
"However," the editorial affirmed, "it’s necessary to stress that having reached this significant milestone, India must do everything it can to ensure that the implementation of this agreement is ironclad, efficient and conclusive. The details on just how this system will work are awaited from India and it must be stressed that there needs to be full clarity on the procedures, including the legal minutiae and an assurance of time-bound proceedings."
It went on, "These cases must not end up joining the snail’s pace of the Indian judicial system as its delay and drag is a well-known fact. India must assure, and implement swiftly, the verdicts for these cases; only then will this breakthrough of the continuance, and pursuance, of the UAE courts’ verdicts achieve its full validation.
"Under no circumstances must it be that the petitioners in the UAE are then dismayed by the protracted nature of the legal system in India."
"This would turn out to be cold comfort," the paper said in conclusion.
