Is Modi Government Doing Enough to Bring Nirav Modi Back?

The Interpol is likely to issue Red Corner Notice against Nirav Modi within a week, says CBI.

Nirav Modi is the main accused in an alleged fraud of over Rs 11,000 crore in the Punjab National Bank.

(Photo Courtesy: Facebook/Nirav Modi)

Th CBI has expedited the process to issue a Red Corner Notice (RCN) against absconding diamantaire Nirav Modi after it became known that he had travelled to multiple countries on a revoked Indian passport.

Interpol is likely to issue the RCN against Modi within a week, said Abhishek Dayal, CBI spokesperson.

The CBI had requested Interpol to issue an RCN on 14 May 2018, after the chargesheet was filed against Modi and his uncle Mehul Choksi.

But is our investigating agency doing enough to bring back the fugitive who has managed to dodge the CBI and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for almost six months?

Till now, the CBI and the ED have been clueless about Modi’s whereabouts while he’s country-hopping on a revoked passport. Clearly, there are glaring gaps in our system that are keeping Modi from facing trail in court.

The MEA’s Version

Modi’s passport was revoked on 24 February 2018 by the MEA.

“After Modi’s passport was revoked by the MEA, the Ministry of Home Affairs was duly informed about it. From here onwards, it is the responsibility of the MHA and other agencies to follow up with Interpol so that it reaches the immigration authorities and other concerned bodies of different countries,” said the MEA official spokesperson.

But the responsibility of the MEA doesn’t end with sharing the information with the MHA, says Anil Trigunayat, a former ambassador.

It is the responsibility of the MEA to inform all the countries, through diplomatic channels, where the agency suspected Modi could have fled.

Anil Trigunayat, former ambassador

But did the MEA contact the countries through diplomatic channels, and inform them of where the CBI suspected Modi could be hiding? The ministry is yet to respond to The Quint’s query.

The CBI’s Version

The CBI has claimed that it wrote four reminder letters on 25 April and 22, 24 and 28 May, to six countries – namely the UK, USA, France, Belgium, UAE and Singapore – informing them about the revocation of the passport and seeking immediate updates on Modi.

The CBI shared the information about the revocation of Modi’s passport in the diffusion notice issued on 15 February. The diffusion notice is a less important and less formal notice than the Red Corner Notice.

According to the CBI, the information flashed on Interpol’s central database on 24 February, but whether the information was shared by the respective countries with their immigration authorities is unclear, and something the CBI is still trying to figure out.

Once the information is flashed on the central database, it is the responsibility of Interpol of the respective country to share the information with the immigration authorities. It is not done automatically. Probably, the lack of communication between Interpol and the immigration authorities of the countries helped Modi get away.

Senior Official, CBI

Clearly, writing four reminder letters to six countries wasn’t enough. The first reminder was sent out on 25 April to the six countries, one month after revoking the passport.

This raises several questions:

• If the CBI was so efficiently working on tracking Modi, then why didn’t it immediately write letters to the six countries informing them about him?
• Modi travelled three times on a revoked passport between 15 and 31 March, before the CBI wrote letters to six countries. Would Modi have been able to travel on a revoked passport had the CBI written to the six countries immediately after his passport was revoked on 24 February?
• Did the CBI move too slowly in nabbing Modi?
• Knowing that Interpol would not issue a Red Corner Notice against an absconder until a chargesheet was filed by the investigating agency, could the CBI and the ED have expedited the process of filing the chargesheet? As it stood, the chargesheet was filed only three-and-a-half months after the investigation had commenced.
• Has the CBI tried to find out whether Modi possesses passports of other countries too?
• Only the UK responded to the CBI with some details on Modi’s travel to different countries. Why didn’t the remaining five countries cooperate? Is it because the MEA didn’t make efforts to contact the embassies of these countries and request their help with the fugitive Nirav Modi?