London: The High Court of Justice, King’s Bench Division, London, on Wednesday rejected Nirav Modi’s petition seeking to reopen proceedings against his extradition order to India.

The matter was strongly argued by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) advocate, supported by a dedicated team from the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), including investigating officers who traveled to London for the hearing. The reopening application was based on the Bhandari judgment; however, through sustained and coordinated efforts by the CBI, the challenge was successfully overcome. 

Fifty-four-year-old Nirav Modi, wanted in India to face trial on charges of fraud and money laundering in the estimated USD 2 billion Punjab National Bank (PNB) loan scam case, appeared via videolink from Pentonville Prison in north London.

His lawyers relied heavily on the extradition case of Sanjay Bhandari, the defence sector consultant accused of tax evasion and money laundering, who was discharged from extradition bail on human rights grounds last year.

The CPS, representing the Indian government, argued against reopening a matter in which Nirav’s extradition had been ordered nearly six years ago.

Extradition poses a real risk of inhuman or degrading treatment or torture arising from interrogation in India, argued Nirav’s barrister Edward Fitzgerald KC. He also sought to underplay the assurances given by the government of India as “neither adequate nor reliable” to meet the risk posed by the prospect of additional non-bailable warrants being executed against the diamantaire.

He further alleged that his client could even be moved from Arthur Road Jail in Mumbai to Gujarat to be interrogated by agencies other than the CBI and Enforcement Directorate (ED).

In April 2021, then UK Home Secretary Priti Patel had ordered Nirav Modi’s extradition to face these charges in Indian courts after a prima facie case was established. Since then, he has submitted several unsuccessful bail applications as well as appeals in the UK courts.