New Delhi: The United Kingdom Home office has approved the extradition of fugitive diamantaire Nirav Modi’s on Friday. In February, a UK court had cleared the first legal hurdle for Nirav Modi’s extradition. A UK judge ruled that fugitive diamond merchant Nirav Modi not only has a case to answer in the Indian courts but that there is no evidence to suggest he would not receive a fair trial in India. Modi lost his nearly two-year-long legal battle against extradition on all grounds.
The court also added that Modi would have the right to appeal to the High Court against the decision to send the case to the Secretary of State. However, this appeal would not be heard until the Secretary of State has made a decision, it said.
The 49-year-old jeweller has been repeatedly denied bail due to the seriousness of the allegations against him and remains behind bars in a London prison since his arrest in March 2019.
Modi along with his uncle Mehul Choksi had been booked by investigative agencies CBI and ED in January 2018 for what is now known as the Punjab National Bank loan scam.
Arthur Road Jail
With a UK court ruling, Mumbai’s Arthur Road jail readied itself with a special cell to lodge him. The Maharashtra prisons department had in 2019 shared information with the Centre about the status of the prison and facilities for lodging Nirav Modi.
The Centre had sought information about it from the state home department as extradition proceedings for Nirav Modi had then advanced before the Westminster Magistrates Court in the UK, the official said.