A UK court has rejected the bail plea of Nirav Modi, a fugitive diamond merchant wanted in India for his alleged role in the Rs 6,000 crore Punjab National Bank (PNB) scam. This is the 10th time that Modi’s bail petition has been rejected since his detention in the UK in March 2019. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had strongly opposed the bail plea, arguing that Modi is a fugitive economic offender who is wanted for trial in India.
The UK High Court had approved Modi’s extradition to India in 2022, but he has been fighting the extradition while denying all allegations. Modi, 55, is accused of embezzling Rs 6,498.20 crore as part of a larger Rs 13,000 crore fraud involving fraudulent letters of undertaking issued by PNB. He fled India in January 2018, just weeks before the scam came to light, and has been held in a UK prison since March 2019.
The CBI has been working closely with the Crown Prosecution Service in the UK to ensure that Modi is extradited to India to face trial. The agency has successfully defended the arguments against Modi’s bail plea, resulting in its rejection. Modi’s uncle and co-accused, Mehul Choksi, who also fled India in early 2018, was arrested in Belgium last month and is similarly accused of playing a key role in the PNB scam.
Both Modi and Choksi face multiple charges in India, including criminal conspiracy, cheating, money laundering, and corruption, under various Indian laws. The extradition process marks a major step in India’s efforts to bring high-profile economic offenders back to face justice. The CBI has been working tirelessly to ensure that those who have committed economic crimes in India are held accountable, and the rejection of Modi’s bail plea is a significant development in this regard.