‘Secret proceedings’ delay fugitive Nirav Modi’s extradition from UK to India again
Fugitive diamantaire Nirav Modi’s extradition to India may be on hold because of a second asylum claim by him, HT learns. UK tells India Nirav Modi cannot be extradited yet over ‘secret proceedings’ (File photo) New Delhi has won in all extradition proceedings concerning Modi in UK courts, but his repatriation appears to have hit a roadblock, with British authorities informing their Indian counterparts that he cannot yet be extradited due to certain “secret proceedings”, highly placed officials told HT. London has neither officially nor unofficially shared with New Delhi the nature of these “secret proceedings”, but this is generally the term used for a plea for asylum. Modi made an earlier asylum plea in 2018, but this was rejected last year. But Indian officials aren’t ruling out the possibility of Modi making a fresh asylum claim in the UK on humanitarian grounds — particularly by citing the Sanjay Bhandari case and arguing that there has been a significant change in the circumstances since his previous application. Over the past year, Modi unsuccessfully argued before …
