News India Live, Digital Desk: Nirav modi: The London -based High Court on Thursday dismissed the fresh bail plea filed by the diamond businessman Nirav Modi. Modi has been in the UK jail for more than six years, fighting a fight against his extradition to face the Indian courts in the Rs 13,000 crore Punjab National Bank (PNB) fraud case. He is accused of committing this fraud with his maternal uncle Mehul Choksi.
The 54 -year -old person’s legal lawyer demanded “time passing” and bail on the basis of adverse effects on his health in London jail.
However, Justice Michael Fordham ruled at the Royal Court of Justice that there is a danger of Nirav absconding and he has funds to influence witnesses in his case.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) said in a statement in New Delhi, “The new bail plea filed by Nirav Deepak Modi was rejected by the High Court of Kings Bench Division in London on Thursday. The lawyer of the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) strongly opposed the bail arguments, which was assisted by a strong CBI team with the investigation and law officials who went to London for this purpose.”
Three types of criminal proceedings are underway against Nirav in India – the CBI case of fraud with Punjab National Bank (PNB), the ED case related to the alleged refinement of that fraud and the third set of criminal proceedings related to alleged intervention with evidence and alleged intervention with witnesses in CBI proceedings.
He was arrested on an extradition warrant on March 19, 2019 and ordered his extradition in April 2021 by the then UK Home Secretary Preeti Patel. Nirav has since ended his legal appeal in the case till the Supreme Court in London and filed several previous bail petitions, a year ago in May 2024, his last attempt was in the Westminster Magistrate Court of London.
Earlier this year, he appeared for another hearing in the London High Court through a video link from Themside Jail, seeking a ban on repayment of loans of more than US $ 8 million taken by a Dubai -based company attached to him.
In February, Justice David Bailey said, “He is on remand until the results of the ‘confidential’ process, which will probably continue by the end of 2026… (and) it is unlikely to end soon.”
It is believed that it is a reference to the application for asylum in Britain, but so far only indirect and superficial references have been found in the UK courts. Nirav has been lodged in London jail since March 2019, he is accused of grabbing Rs 6498.20 crore from the total amount of scam.
The CBI statement said that its extradition has already been approved by the High Court of Britain in favor of the Government of India.
The agency said, “It was his 10th bail plea since being detained in Britain, which the CBI successfully defended through Crown Prosiction Service, London.”
It said that Mehul Choksi, the maternal uncle of co-accused Nirav in the PNB fraud case, was arrested by officials in Belgium where he went for treatment.
Both are accused of grabbing more than Rs 13,000 crore from PNB using fake promissory note and foreign credit letters.
Officials of the Brady House branch of PNB in Mumbai issued the promissory note (LOU) and foreign debut (FLC) to their firms without any sanctioned boundary or cash margin and the central system of the bank, so that any investigation could be avoided in the event of lapse.
LOU is a guarantee given by a bank to a foreign bank by its customer. If the customer does not pay the money to the foreign bank, it is the responsibility of the guarantor bank.
SBI, Mauritius based on LOU released by PNB; Allahabad Bank, Hong Kong; Axis Bank, Hong Kong; Bank of India, Antwerp; Canara Bank, Mamana; And money was lent by SBI, Frankfurt.
The CBI alleged that since the accused companies did not pay the amount taken against the said fraud LOU and FLC, PNB paid to foreign banks including outstanding interest, who carried forward the buyer loan and gave the bills against the fraudulent LOU and FLC issued by PNB.
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