Kathmandu, May 12, 2026 (ANI) — Nepal’s Agreement on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters with India was formally presented to the House of Representatives on Tuesday.
Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Sobita Gautam tabled the treaty during the parliamentary session. The pact, signed in February of this year, was brought to the assembly to officially inform lawmakers and to advance its implementation.
According to the ministry, the agreement is designed to streamline and strengthen cooperation between the two countries in criminal investigations, prosecutions and related judicial processes. It aims to make it easier to collect and share evidence, secure documents, trace and repatriate assets hidden abroad, and coordinate cross-border legal action—areas that have previously posed legal and administrative challenges.
Minister Gautam explained that without a formal mutual legal assistance framework, authorities have faced obstacles when probing crimes that cross the India–Nepal border, obtaining evidence located in the other country, and bringing perpetrators to justice. The new pact is expected to reduce these hurdles and improve the effectiveness of joint efforts.
The agreement formalises cooperative measures that were first discussed at a home secretary-level meeting in New Delhi in July 2025. Nepal’s Cabinet authorised the law ministry to proceed with the long-pending initiative on October 16, 2025.
Officials say the treaty will help combat a range of transnational crimes, including human trafficking, drug trafficking, financial crimes, terrorism-related offences and organised crime. It is also expected to bolster anti-money-laundering and counter-terrorism financing work by facilitating information exchange, sharing investigative evidence, and coordinating prosecutions and inquiries between legal and law-enforcement bodies in both countries.
For years, the absence of a dedicated mutual legal assistance and extradition framework created complications for security agencies seeking to hand over suspects or obtain evidence across the border. The new agreement seeks to fill that gap and enhance bilateral criminal justice cooperation.
(This report is based on a syndicated feed supplied to The Tribune and is published as received.)
