UK court denies Nirav Modi’s appeal; extradition near-certain

On November 9, a two-judge bench of the high court had approved Modi’s extradition to India to face charges of fraud and money laundering to the tune of $2 billion.

On Thursday morning, local time, the high court in London denied Nirav Modi permission to appeal to the UK’s Supreme Court against his extradition to India, making his return to face trial here a near inevitability.

09 August 2016, Mumbai : Nirav Modi Indian jewellery designer at his office in Lower Parel, in Mumbai . Photo By Aniruddha Chowdhury/Mint (Aniruddha Chowdhury/Mint)

Modi has the option of applying for asylum in the UK like his compatriot Vijay Mallya has, or approaching the European Court of Human Rights for relief. However, legal experts say given the peculiarities of his case and the fact that he is already in jail, would make it difficult for the UK to grant him political asylum.

On November 9, a two-judge bench of the high court had approved Modi’s extradition to India to face charges of fraud and money laundering to the tune of $2 billion. Though the high court admitted further evidence and heard witnesses, it agreed with the findings of the trial judge at Westminster Magistrates’ Court that there were no bars to the diamantaire’s extradition. Modi had appealed the trial court’s ruling arguing that District Judge Samuel Goozee was wrong to conclude that his mental health was not bad enough to render his extradition unjust or oppressive.

Apart from financial crime, Nirav Modi also faces serious charges of intimidating witnesses and destroying evidence. Since his arrest in March 2019, he has been unable to get bail despite multiple attempts. “It is possible that he has applied for asylum but it is unlikely it will be successful,” said Toby Cadman, who appeared on behalf of India against Nirav Modi.

“It is more or less finalized now that Modi has no legal ground left to delay his extradition. If he decides to go to ECHR, he will lose his appeal as UK courts are not convinced with his arguments. Evidence of fraud and criminal conspiracy against him is too strong,” said a senior CBI officer in New Delhi. When asked about his asylum application, a UK home office source told HT that they do not comment on individual cases.

Modi, 51, fled India on January 1, 2018. He has been lodged at Wandsworth prison on the outskirts of London since March 19, 2019 after he was arrested on the basis of India’s extradition request to Britain. He is accused of cheating PNB of ₹6,498 crore (the total fraud is worth ₹13,578 crore out of which around ₹7,000 crore is linked to his uncle Mehul Choksi).

ED has so far attached Modi’s properties worth ₹2,650 crore under Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). He has also been declared a fugitive under the Fugitive Economic Offenders (FEO) Act, which allows ED to confiscate properties of an accused abroad. His assets worth ₹1,389 crore have been confiscated under this law.