New Delhi [India], July 22 : Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri on Tuesday stated that the Indian government is continuing to "make the case" for the extradition of fugitives Lalit Modi, Nirav Modi and Vijay Mallya from the United Kingdom (UK) as part of their ongoing efforts to secure the return of these individuals wanted for legal proceedings in India.
Addressing a press briefing ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the UK and the Maldives, Misri noted that both India and the UK have held talks on the matter and that they are continuing their efforts to extradite these fugitives to India.
"There are a few questions related to fugitives from Indian law and Indian justice in the UK. These have been a matter of discussion between both sides, and we have continued to make the case for these fugitives to be rendered to India. Obviously, there is a legal process that such requests and such issues go through in the other country, and we continue to follow up very closely with our partners in the UK on these," the Foreign Secretary said.
Lalit Modi, Nirav Modi and Vijay Mallya have all been accused of financial fraud in separate cases in India. All had fled to London to escape the charges.
Lalit Modi, who previously served as the vice-president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), is accused of bid-rigging, money laundering, and violating the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 (FEMA). He left India in 2010 while under investigation for financial misconduct, including unauthorised fund transfers.
Meanwhile, the Liquor baron Vijay Mallya, who is currently living in London, is the subject of extradition efforts for alleged loan defaults. He is accused in a bank loan default case of over Rs 9,000 crore.
Nirav Modi, who is currently in custody of the UK authorities, is the prime accused in the over Rs 13,800 crore fraud at Punjab National Bank. He was declared a fugitive economic offender by India in December 2019. He was arrested in March 2019, and his extradition to India has already been approved by the UK High Court. The PMLA case against him and his uncle, Mehul Choksi, was registered by the ED in 2018, with multiple assets seized during the investigation.
Foreign Secretary Misri also addressed the issue of Khalistani extremists and related groups in the UK, and stated that it was a matter of concern for India and that it had been brought to the attention of partners in Britain.
"The issue of the presence of Khalistani extremists and bodies close to these people is, again, something that we have brought to the attention of our partners in the UK. We will continue to do so. This is a matter of concern not only to us, but it should be a matter of concern to our partners as well, because this impacts social cohesion and social order in these other countries as well," Misri stated.
PM Modi will embark on a two-nation tour of the UK and the Maldives from July 23 to July 26, the MEA had said on July 20. This visit to the UK is at the invitation of Prime Minister Keir Starmer, while the state visit to the Maldives is at the invitation of President Mohamed Muizzu.