UK court rejects Nirav Modi's appeal against extradition
London, November 9
Fugitive diamond merchant Nirav Modi, who allegedly cheated Punjab National Bank (PNB) of over Rs 11,000 crore, is likely to be extradited soon to India from the UK as he lost his appeal in the High Court on Wednesday.
Rejecting the appeal against extradition to India on mental health grounds, the High Court in London ruled that his risk of suicide was not such that it would be either unjust or oppressive to extradite him to face charges of fraud and money laundering. Lord Justice Jeremy Stuart-Smith and Justice Robert Jay, who heard the appeal earlier this year, delivered the verdict that allowed the fugitive businessman’s extradition to India. They said District Judge Sam Goozee’s Westminster Magistrates’ Court order from last year in favour of extradition was “sound”.
The leave to appeal in the High Court had been granted on two grounds related to mental health — under Article 3 of the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR) and Section 91 of the Extradition Act, 2003.
The 51-year-old has the option of further appeals in the UK and European courts. The process to bring him to India is unlikely to be a speedy one. — Agencies
