Indian-born diamond jewellery designer Nirav Modi, who's at the heart of a $2.2 billion Punjab National Bank (PNB) fraud case, has fled to the UK, where he is claiming political asylum, the Financial Times reported on Sunday, citing Indian and British officials.

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Ministry of External Affairs told the FT the government was waiting for the country's law enforcement agencies to approach them before pushing for an extradition, which had thus far not happened.

Let's take a look at the UK asylum and extradition laws and what lies ahead for Modi:

Who Is Nirav Modi?

Nirav Modi is the founder of the $2.3 billion Firestar Diamond and was ranked #57 in the Forbes list of India's billionaires in 2017.

Modi grew up in Belgium, dropped out of Wharton and moved to India where he got trained in the diamond trade under his uncle, according to Forbes.

He went on to launch his own Nirav Modi brand with 16 stores in locations such as Delhi, Mumbai, New York, Hong Kong, London and Macau.

How He Got Involved In The PNB Fracas?

The issue unfolded after Nirav Modi's companies sought a fresh loan from PNB in January this year. The officials who had helped them earlier had retired.

When the bank insisted on guarantees to issue letter of undertakings, the Modi companies allegedly said they had used the facility before. That's when the bank started investigating.

How Did He Land Up In The UK?

Modi has been globetrotting with the help of international passports since the PNB scam came to light.

He was spotted in Dubai, Belgium, New York, Hong Kong and was last seen in London, according to media reports.

What Is Political Asylum And What Are Asylum Laws In The UK?

Modi is in London trying to claim asylum from what he calls "political persecution", the FT reported.

The principle of asylum is that nations should safeguard people who face persecution or danger and whose own countries can’t or won’t protect them.

In order to stay in the UK as a refugee, the person must have left his/her own country and be unable to go back because of the fear of persecution.

After submitting the application, there will be a meeting with an immigration officer (known as a ‘screening’) and then an asylum interview with a caseworker.

One usually gets a decision on the application within six months.

However, the person may also land up in jail for up to two years or have to leave the UK if given false information on the application.

The UK government provides housing and money to support the candidate and his/her family, while they wait to find out if they’ll be given asylum.

What About Extradition?

One requirement of extradition is dual criminality – that the offence must be an offence in both countries and punishable by imprisonment of at least one year. Fraud is punishable in India by seven years of imprisonment and five to 10 years under British law.

How Does The Extradition Process Begins?

For the extradition process to begin, a warrant for extradition has to be issued by an Indian court, which is the nodal agency, in this case the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), takes to Ministry of External Affairs and then to UK’s Home Department, which refers it to the Magistrates’ Court. Then the UK process takes over.

UK’s Extradition Act, 2003 lists the procedure involved to extradite someone to non-European Category 2 countries such as India, with which the UK has international extradition arrangements.

Under the Act, first, an extradition request is made to the secretary of state (Home Department) in the UK, who then decides whether to certify the request or not.

After that, a judge in the Westminister Magistrates’ Court decides whether to issue a warrant for arrest and the wanted person is arrested and brought before the court. There is then a preliminary hearing after which an extradition hearing takes place.

It is only once this hearing concludes and if the surrender of the wanted person isn’t prohibited under the Act, then the secretary of state decides whether to order extradition or not.

Can The UK Government Change Its decision At The Last Moment?

The British government can choose to overturn the court’s final verdict if it so desires.

UK law states that a requested person must be extradited within 28 days of the secretary of state’s final decision to order extradition.

This entire process, however, can take one to three years.

Source: www.legislation.gov.uk, www.gov.uk

First Published:Jun 11, 2018 11:23 AM IST