The 'Great' Indian Fugitives

Billionaire fugitives, while winking at the Indian law, are leading lavish lifestyles abroad after scamming their country out of thousands of crores of rupees as the law enforcement agencies struggle to even trace them, let alone bring them back to face trials.

These fugitives' names are not only spoken in the Parliament but have become a common man's amusement as well. Since the news of celebrity jeweller Nirav Modi and his uncle Mehul Choksi's bank fraud case, worth Rs 13,500 crore, came to the lime light in February, the nation's probing agencies have been flooded with around 700 cases of such frauds within a month. The shocking number puts a big question mark on the way banks operate and function in the country.

Modi and Choksi were not the first ones to flee India after getting involved in such frauds. This has happened several times earlier but the bankers have never bothered to rectify the loop holes. Why?

The law enforcement agencies are struggling with similar questions. Sources in the probing agencies have now found that bankers, from humble backgrounds, working for their entity outside India are first being "honey-trapped by middlemen", and then are utilised by the corporate and business houses for their own benefits.

"The bankers posted outside India are vulnerable with middlemen trapping them. Escorts have been used to trap the young bankers. Their acts were filmed and then the bankers were blackmailed to carryout financial frauds for big corporate houses," said one of the investigator working with Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). Intelligence agencies have found some of the bankers, posted outside India, being compromised and playing the hands of business houses.

The central government has asked the intelligence agencies to prepare a list of all the "compromised" bank officials working outside India. Also, the Centre has asked banks to compile a list of all the officials serving outside India and share with the law enforcement agencies. "The work in this regards has started,"said an Intelligence Bureau (IB) officer.

Further, the Prime Minister Office (PMO) has conveyed the government machineries to work together, first to bring the top financial fugitives to face the law and then to seize their bank accounts, properties and other assets spread across the world. A team has been formed exclusively to deal with the other countries to extradite seven India's top financial fugitives — Nirav Modi, his uncle Mehul Choksi, Vijay Mallya, Lalit Modi, Deepak Talwar, Sanjay Bhandari and Jatin Mehta — and make them face the law.

NIRAV MODI AND MEHUL CHOKSI

Nirav Modi and his uncle Mehul Choksi are wanted in a Rs 13,500 crore Punjab National Bank fraud. The CBI is doing its best to extradite them. While Nirav is in the UK, Choksi is in Antigua and Barbuda.

"We have requested for extradition of Nirav as well his uncle Choksi from the United Kingdom and Antigua respectively," said CBI spokesperson Abhishek Dayal.

VK Singh, Minister of State for External Affairs, has also said, "An extradition request has been received in the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) from the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) for the extradition of Nirav Modi from the UK."

Singh said that the request has been sent by a Special Diplomatic Bag to the High Commission of India in London. He said that the MEA revoked the passport of Nirav as per the provisions of Section 10(3)(c) of the Passports Act, 1967, on February 16, 2018. "This information was conveyed to the CBI for onward transmission to the Interpol," he said.

On the other hand, CBI said that they sent an extradition request for Choksi to MHA earlier this week. The Home Ministry has forwarded the request to MEA which further sent it to Antigua and Barbuda authorities.

CBI, in its extradition request for Mehul, has cited "principle of reciprocity", "principle of dual criminality" and "cooperation under United Nations Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC)".

Even after India cancelled the passports of both Choksi and Modi in February, it didn't stop them from travelling from to another country.

Choksi has moved to Antigua and has been able to get a local passport. He claimed he had applied for Antiguan citizenship to expand his business as the passport of the Caribbean nation provides visa-free travel to 132 countries. He was granted citizenship in November last year.

Nirav, however, is reportedly hiding in UK.

Nirav left India on January 1, while his business associate and uncle Choksi did so on January 4 — much before the PNB lodged a complaint with the CBI that the duo had defrauded it. The subsequent complaints lodged by the PNB took the quantum of the scam to about Rs 14,000 crore.

VIJAY MALLYA

The liquor baron, Vijay Mallya, is hiding in the UK. He faces several cases in India wherein his airline company, Kingfisher, defaulted on loans to the tune of Rs 9,000 crore from Indian banks. In March 2016, several banks approached the Supreme Court to stop Mallya from going abroad due to the money he owed them. He had, however, left by then. He is still in London. CBI and Enforcement Directorate (ED) are rigorously pursuing his extradition matter which led Mallya to make "unconditional offer" to an Indian court. He is willing to settle fraud charges, as he continues to fight extradition from Britain.

Mallya, chairman of the UB Group drinks conglomerate and chief executive of the financially ailing Force India Formula One team, however, said it did not entail pleading guilty to any crimes.

LALIT MODI

In 2010, Lalit Modi fled to London in the UK and is still there. Nirav, who is credited with founding the Indian Premier League, was the biggest cash cow for the Board for Control of Cricket in India (BCCI). In April 2010, he said the ownership details of the Kochi IPL team. The board sent three show cause notices his way, accusing him of breaching confidentialy agreements, alleged financial irregularities in broadcast deals and rigging auctions. By September, he was sacked from the board, and he fled to England citing threats to his family's safety. The ED got a blue corner Interpol notice against Nirav for breaching rules related to the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA).

In 2011, his passport was revoked. The ED got a blue corner Interpol notice against him for breaching rules related to the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) during the time he was the IPL chief. He continues to be in the UK and has challenged the ED's notice in a London court.

DEEPAK TALWAR

Deepak Talwar is currently in the UAE, where he has been barred from leaving the country. The Income Tax Department has filed five prosecution complaints against corporate consultant Talwar for allegedly receiving kickbacks worth hundreds of crores of rupees in individual and corporate bank accounts controlled by him and his family members in various tax jurisdictions, including tax havens, across the world.

CBI had booked Talwar and his NGO Advantage India on November 16 last year for criminal conspiracy, forgery and using forged documents. Two officials of private firm Accordis Health Care Pvt Ltd and a consultant, T Kapoor, were also booked.

Advantage India had received foreign contributions of Rs 90.72 crore 2012-13 to 2014-15 and bank interest of Rs 6.69 crore. It also received 9 million euros as part of Corporate Social Responsibility from Airbus SAS, Paris, in three equal instalments annually. From leading European missile manufacturing company MBDA, UK, his NGO got 6 million euros in three equal instalments annually. The case is in cold storage for now.

SANJAY BHANDARI

The controversial arms dealer is sitting in London as well. While probing cases against Delhi-based hawala operators in 2016, investigating agencies found an entry of Rs 116 crore, on behalf of a company, which led them to Sanjay Bhandari. Income Tax sleuths raided Bhandari's offices and houses in Delhi in 2016, following which, he fled India. During the raids in 2016, the agencies found emails linking him with Congress president Sonia Gandhi's son-in-law Robert Vadra, which was later denied by Vadra's lawyers. Bhandari is involved in Pilatus aircraft deal worth around Rs 4,000 crore, which was signed during the UPA regime in 2012.

It was an year after Bhandari left India that the CBI started a preliminary enquiry into the Pilatus aircraft deal. The enquiry started in July 2017 following the examination of an Income-Tax investigation report on Bhandari. The agency, so far, has not filed any regular case into the matter.

Now, various agencies, including the Enforcement Directorate (ED), the Delhi Police and the Income Tax Department, have started investigations. When he fled, he was already facing charges under the stringent Official Secrets Act.The ED had recently attached Bhandari's assets worth Rs 21 crore. The ED made Bhandari the first accused to have assets attached under the new Black Money (Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets) Act. The new law was brought in last year to clamp down on offenders who had made a mockery of the country's tax laws when it came to dealing with black money stashed abroad. The Delhi Police was in for another embarrassment when Interpol refused to issue a Red Corner notice, citing that the case under the OSA appeared to be political in nature, and did not fulfil the criterion of a Red Corner notice.

JATIN MEHTA

In 2013, a consortium of Indian banks were hit when the Winsome group, a well-known diamond house, led by promoter Jatin Mehta, failed to repay at least a dozen lenders. PNB was hurt the most of the Rs 6,800 crore credit extended by the consortium led by Standard Chartered Bank. PNB has the highest exposure of Rs 1,800 crore. The agencies are still struggling to crack the Winsome case and Jatin Mehta and his wife have given up their Indian citizenship and to become the citizens of the Federation of St Kitts and Nevis after the defaults started. More crucially, India does not have an extradition with the country and analysts point out that it will be nearly impossible, if it is required, for the Indian authorities to bring Mehta back and then book him.

The matter came to CBI as early as August, 2014, but it was only on April 5, 2017, that is registered six cases against the Winsome Diamonds and other group companies. Strangely, for three long years, the CBI investigated without filing any FIRs or making any arrests in the case.

It was in June end this year that CBI swung into action and filed a charge sheet against two former chairman cum managing directors of the Canara Bank in connection with an alleged loan default of Rs 146 crore by Mehta of Winsome Diamonds. It also sought a Red Corner Notice against the billionaire jeweller. "The agency has filed the charge sheet against 21 accused, which includes Mehta, his company, his wife, besides 15 public servants," CBI said.

INTERPOL–United Nations Security Council Special Notice

Issued for groups and individuals who are the targets of UN Security Council Sanctions Committees.

What is the purpose of an INTERPOL Red Notice?

A Red Notice is a request to locate and provisionally arrest an individual pending extradition. It is issued by the General Secretariat at the request of a member country or an international tribunal based on a valid national arrest warrant. It is not an international arrest warrant. INTERPOL cannot compel any member country to arrest an individual who is the subject of a Red Notice. Each member country decides for itself what legal value to give to a Red Notice within their borders.

Are the individuals wanted by INTERPOL?

No, they are wanted by a country or an international tribunal. When INTERPOL publishes a Red Notice, this is simply to inform all member countries that the person is wanted, based on an arrest warrant or equivalent judicial decision issued by a country or an international tribunal. INTERPOL does not issue arrest warrants.

Who are the subjects of Red Notices?

Red Notices are issued for individuals sought for prosecution or to serve a sentence. When the individual is sought for prosecution, it means they are suspected of committing a crime but have not yet been prosecuted and so should be considered innocent until proven guilty.

How is a Red Notice issued?

Police in one of the member countries request a Red Notice via their National Central Bureau and provide information on the case. The INTERPOL General Secretariat publishes the Notice after a compliance check is completed. Police all around the world are alerted.

Why is the Red Notice important?

It gives high, international visibility to cases. Criminals and suspects are flagged to border officials, making travel difficult. Countries can request and share critical information linked to an investigation.

At INTERPOL, there are 192 member countries. Each country maintains a NCB. It forms the link with INTERPOL's global network, enabling member countries to work together on cross-border investigations.

IN PURSUIT OF OFFENDERS

630
Interpol has issued Red Corner Notice against 630 fugitives after Indian government’s request

60
Interpol has issued Yellow Notice against 60 fugitives after Indian government’s request

RED NOTICES AGAINST INDIAN NATIONALS BY FOREIGN LAW-ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES

Afghanistan
1

Canada
2

Cyprus
2

Malawi
1

Malaysia
5

Russia
1

Singapore
1

South Africa
1

United States
6

Notices are published by INTERPOL at the request of the National Central Bureaus (NCBs) and authorised entities. In India, CBI is the nodal body