BackPNB scam: Nirav Modi's sister remits ₹17.25 cr from UK account to Indian govt, says ED
Nirav Modi is presently lodged in a UK jail and has lost his extradition plea to India in connection with the alleged $2-billion loan fraud at the Brady House branch PNB in Mumbai
PremiumIndia's Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday said fugitive businessman Nirav Modi's sister has "remitted" over ₹17 crore from a UK bank account to that of the Indian government after she was allowed pardon from criminal proceedings in lieu of extending help in the PNB loan fraud case.
Purvi Modi alias Purvi Mehta (47) and her husband Maiank Mehta were made approvers -- granted 'tender of pardon' -- in the case by a Mumbai court in January on the condition of making full and true disclosure.
Purvi and her husband are British citizens and have never joined the probe.
"Purvi Modi (sister of Nirav Modi )remitted an amount of USD 2316889.03 from the UK Bank account to the bank account of Government of India, Directorate of Enforcement. Thus, ED was able to recover appx. Rs.17.25 Crore (USD 2316889.03) from the Proceeds of crime," the probe agency stated.
"On June 24, Purvi Modi intimated Enforcement Directorate that she had received the knowledge of one bank account in London, United Kingdom in her name, which was opened at the behest of her brother Nirav Modi and that the funds did not belong to her."
"As Purvi Modi was allowed tender of pardon on conditions of making full and true disclosure, she remitted an amount of USD 2316889.03 from her UK bank account to the bank account of the government of India, Directorate of Enforcement," the central probe agency said in a statement.
With the cooperation of Purvi Modi, it said, the ED has been able to recover about ₹17.25 crore (USD 2316889.03) from the proceeds of crime, it said.
Nirav Modi is presently lodged in a UK jail and has lost his extradition plea to India in connection with the alleged $2 billion loan fraud at the Brady House branch of Punjab National Bank (PNB) in Mumbai.
The 50-year-old jeweller, who remains behind bars at Wandsworth Prison in south-west London, had lost the first stage of the High Court appeals process last week as a judge declined permission to appeal "on the papers".
In his ruling in February, District Judge Sam Goozee concluded that the diamond merchant has a case to answer before the Indian courts and that the bars to extradition under UK law do not apply in his case. As part of a very comprehensive judgment, the judge concluded that he was satisfied that there is evidence upon which Nirav Modi could be convicted in relation to the conspiracy to defraud the PNB.
The court had also accepted that while Modi's mental health had deteriorated due to the lengthy incarceration in a London prison, exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic, his risk of suicide did not meet the high threshold to conclude that it would be "unjust or oppressive" to extradite him.
Under assurances given by the Indian authorities in court, Modi is to be held at Barrack 12 Arthur Road Jail in Mumbai and provided required medical attention on being extradited to face trial in India.
Modi is the subject of two sets of criminal proceedings, with the CBI case relating to a large-scale fraud upon PNB through the fraudulent obtaining of letters of undertaking (LoUs) or loan agreements, and the ED case relating to the laundering of the proceeds of that fraud.
He also faces two additional charges of "causing the disappearance of evidence" and intimidating witnesses or “criminal intimidation to cause death", which were added on to the CBI case.
"I do not accept the submissions that NDM [Nirav Deepak Modi] was involved in legitimate business and using the LoUs in a permissible fashion," notes the magistrates’ court judgment forwarded to the Home Secretary.
India is a designated Part 2 country by virtue of the Extradition Act 2003, which means it is the Cabinet minister who has the authority to order a requested person’s extradition after considering all issues. The Home Secretary’s order rarely goes against the court’s conclusions, as she has to consider only very narrow bars to extradition, which do not apply in Modi's case.
The case will now go through the next stage of the High Court appeals process, with Modi’s lawyers set to argue in favour of a full appeal hearing against the extradition order.
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