Extradition request for Nirav Modi sent to UK: VK Singh

Smita Sharma
Tribune News Service
New Delhi, August 3

After claiming for months that fugitive businessman Nirav Modi’s whereabouts were not known to agencies, India has now sent an extradition request to the United Kingdom for the billionaire jeweller. Responding to a written question in Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for External Affairs, VK Singh informed the house of the development.

“An extradition request has been received in the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) from the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) for the extradition of Nirav Modi from UK,” VK Singh told the house in a written reply. Interpol last month issued a red corner notice to member states to find and arrest Modi wanted for defrauding the Punjab National Bank allegedly along with his uncle Mehul Choksi to the tune of some 2 billion USD.

Incidentally, MEA had dismissed reports of Nirav Modi being in UK earlier in April when Prime Minister Narendra Modi was in London to attend the Commonwealth Summit.

A request for provisional arrest to Hong Kong authorities was sent after the diamond merchant was reportedly spotted in the country around that time.

 Questions are being raised if Nirav Modi was in London all this while and the Indian government was aware of it, but chose to deflect attention to Hong Kong to avoid any embarrassment during Modi’s visit. The UK High Commission in Delhi has refused to comment, calling it an individual case, even as VK Singh informed that the extradition request has been sent in a ‘special diplomatic bag’.

“The request has been sent by a Special Diplomatic Bag to the High Commission of India (HCI), London for onward transmission to authorities,” replied Singh. The junior minister also told Parliament that Nirav Modi’s passport was revoked on 16th of February and the “information was conveyed to the CBI for onward transmission to the Interpol”.

Responding to queries on possible location of Nirav Modi, MEA spokesperson Ravish Kumar on June 28 said: “We have sent another message to all our missions and posts as well as a message to select group of countries requesting the help of that government in denying entry and to inform us if he is residing in that country. Also to clarify that so far we have not received any extradition request in respect of Nirav Modi”.