Court Allows Probe Agency To Start Extradition Process Against Nirav Modi

A special court in Mumbai today allowed the Enforcement Directorate's plea seeking extradition of fugitive billionaire jeweller Nirav Modi in a money laundering case related to the USD 2 billion Punjab National Bank (PNB) loan fraud.

Judge M S Azmi allowed the central agency to initiate the extradition process.

ED counsel Hiten Venegaokar said the order would be sent to the Ministry of External Affairs, which would forward it to the UK government.

The agency had moved the extradition application yesterday.

The ED is understood to have sought Modi's extradition from the UK, Belgium and a few other countries, on the basis of a recent charge sheet filed by the agency under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.

The court had last week issued a non-bailable arrest warrant against Nirav Modi after taking cognisance of the charge sheet.

According to the officials, the extradition request was made to multiple countries as Nirav Modi had been changing his location continuously.

Modi, his uncle Mehul Choksi and others are being probed by various agencies after the bank fraud came to light following a complaint from the Punjab National Bank that they allegedly cheated it to the tune of over Rs 13,000 crore.

The CBI and the ED have registered two FIRs each in the case. Modi and Choksi are said to have left the country before the criminal cases were lodged against them.