India alerts overseas mission after notice against NiMo

India has put on alert all its diplomatic and consular missions in foreign countries after the Interpol issued a Red Corner Notice against jeweller Nirav Modi, who is accused of defrauding Punjab National Bank of over Rs 1,3000 crore.

Sources on Wednesday said that New Delhi has asked its missions abroad to bring to the attention of the foreign governments that the diamond merchant, who now has a Red Corner Notice issued by the Interpol against him, has to stand trial in India.

New Delhi also requested the governments of some countries to help trace the fugitive jeweller and to deny him an exit or entry.

Nirav left India on January 1, while his business associate Mehul Choksi did so on January 4 — much before the PNB lodged a complaint with the CBI that the billionaire diamond merchant and his partner had defrauded the state-run bank of Rs 280 crore.

The subsequent complaints lodged by the PNB took the quantum of the scam to about Rs 13,000 crore.

Though Nirav was earlier traced to Hong Kong, he slipped away by the time New Delhi placed a request to the authorities of the special administrative region of China to arrest him and extradite him to India.

He was reported to be spotted in UK and purportedly requested the British government to grant him asylum.

Sources in New Delhi on Wednesday said that the UK had not shared any information with India on whether Nirav had requested the British government to grant him asylum.