NRI fugitive Avtar Singh Grewal, wanted in the US for allegedly killing his estranged wife, on Tuesday challenged the process for his extradition, claiming it lacked the mandatory sanction from the authorities in that country.“There has been no request made by the Governor of Arizona, Phoenix for the extradition of the fugitive criminal which is in violation of the Criminal Procedure Code of the US,” Grewal’s counsel V K Ohri and Akshay Malik said in their written submission.Grewal, 32, was arrested on arrival at IGI Airport here on March 31 last year, following a ‘look-out circular’ issued against him by the Interpol on the request of the FBI.In the submission filed before Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate A K Kuhar, they claimed there was no reason for the fugitive to kill his wife Navneet Kaur as he had cordial relations with her.“The alleged confessional note of Grewal admitting the crime was obtained forcefully in India at the instance of Ratan Singh, the father of the deceased by illegally detaining him,” they submitted, adding that her father was a retired IPS officer.Highlighting the alleged flaws in the autopsy report, they claimed that the extradition documents did not contain any specific reasons for the victim’s death.Taking the submissions on record, the court fixed October six as the date for the Ministry of External Affairs to file their reply.
