Nirav Modi's Petition To Reopen Case Against Extradition Rejected

Fugitive diamond merchant Nirav Modi's petition to reopen proceedings against his extradition order by UK courts was rejected today by the High Court of Justice, King's Bench Division, London. 

The matter was argued by the Crown Prosecution Service advocate, assisted by a dedicated team of the Central Bureau of Investigation. The team included investigating officers who had travelled to London for the hearing. 

The reopening application had been filed on basis of the Bhandari judgment. The judgment came from a High Court in a case involving defence middleman Sanjay Bhandari, who had claimed he would be tortured if he was sent back to India. The court had rejected his extradition on humanitarian grounds. 

Nirav Modi also claimed that he would be at the risk of torture if he is extradited to India. But the CBI officials helped overturn his argument.

While handing down the judgment, the UK High Court observed that Nirav Modi's petition and the circumstances surrounding it are not exceptional and it wou;d not be appropriate to re-open the matter.

Nirav Modi has been wanted in India in connection with the Punjab National Bank fraud case that involved fake guarantees in the name of the state-run lender to secure loans overseas. He left India in January 2018 before the CBI started investigating the PNB scam.

Following his arrest in the UK in 2019, courts approved Nirav Modi's extradition.

Accepting assurances regarding his treatment in India and finding no legal barriers, the courts rejected the earlier appeals.