ED-CBI-NIA team set to leave for UK to extradit fugitives Sanjay Bhandari Nirav Modi Dr Vijay Mallya.
ED-CBI-NIA team set to leave for UK to extradit fugitives Sanjay Bhandari Nirav Modi
Dr Vijay Mallya.
Reportedly, a high-level team of CBI, Enforcement Directorate and National Investigation Agency will be soon leaving for the UK to extradit India’s most wanted fugitives defence dealer Sanjay Bhandari, diamond trader Nirav Modi and Kingfisher Airlines promoter Vijay Mallya.
An attempt is on to identify their properties in the UK and other countries to take possession of the ‘proceeds of crime’.
Sources reveal that the team is headed by a senior officer from foreign ministry and meetings have been scheduled by Indian High Commission in London with the UK authorities for seeking pending information on assets acquired by the fugitives in London along with details of their banking transactions.
Arms dealer Bhandari, who fled in 2016 soon following income tax and ED initiated investigation in multiple defence deals negotiated amidst the UPA regime, is considered close to Robert Vadra, husband of Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi. Bhandari.
According to ED, they had acquired properties in London and Dubai and transferred them to shell companies controlled by C C Thampi, an alleged aide of Vadra.
Extradition of Bhandari, Nirav Modi and Mallya is pending in the UK as all of them have appealed in higher courts against their deportation to India.
ED has already attached their properties in India and money has also been realised by selling assets of Mallya and Modi running into thousands of crores and returned to banks against their outstandings.
The team to London is scheduled to hold a bilateral discussion on the ongoing exchange of information pending with the UK authorities for quite some time under the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT).
Both UK and India are signatories to MLAT and legally bound to share information on criminal investigation related to economic offenders and others.
The NIA team is currently probing several terror suspects involved in Khalistani movement.
While the Union home ministry is the nodal ministry to deal with all matters related to MLAT, in this case, ministry of external affairs (MEA) is involved for diplomatic engagements with the UK as all requests are routed to foreign countries through MEA.
While Modi is wanted in an alleged fraud involving funds of PNB worth over Rs 6,500 crore, Mallya’s assets worth over Rs 5,000 crore were attached and confiscated for swindling banks. ED is probing Bhandari, Thampi and Vadra in payoffs allegedly received in multiple defence deals.
The agency has already attached Bhandari’s properties worth over Rs 26 crore in India and also filed a chargesheet against him, while a special court has declared him a fugitive economic offender like Mallya and Modi.
News Edit K.V.Raman
