Lalit Modi to give up Indian citizenship for Vanuatu
Lalit Modi to give up Indian citizenship for Vanuatu
IPL founder Lalit Modi wanted in India for tax evasion and embezzlement, has acquired the citizenship of Vanuatu. This island nation in the South Pacific Ocean offers an alluring citizenship by investment or ‘golden passport’ programme.
Reportedly, Lalit Modi, wants to surrender his Indian passport. Confirming the development on Friday (March 7), the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said he has acquired the citizenship of Vanuatu, a string of islands in the Pacific Ocean.
According to Randhir Jaiswal, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson “Lalit Modi has made an application for surrendering his passport in the High Commission of India, London and the same will be examined in light of extant rules and procedures.
Jaiswal added that they are also given to understand that he has acquired citizenship of Vanuatu. They continue to pursue the case against him as required under law.
Modi , who is declared an economic offender by India’s investigating agencies, is believed to be living in London since leaving his home country in 2010.
Vanuatu is an island nation in the South Pacific Ocean that achieved freedom from France and Britain in 1980. The archipelago comprising four main and 80 smaller islands lies amid Australia and Fiji. While most of the islands are inhabited by a population of 330,000, some have active volcanoes.
Most of the island nation is covered with tropical rainforests. Located on the Pacific ring of fire, Vanuatu is prone to earthquakes.
As per an Associated Press (AP) report, its lush forests and pristine seas make it a popular tourist destination for those from Australia and New Zealand. In fact, tourism contributes to 40 per cent of Vanuatu’s economy.
Most of the population resides in rural areas and practices subsistence agriculture.
Vanuatu has witnessed political instability since the 1990s. “This is one of the most turbulent political systems in this part of the world,” Riley Duke, a Pacific analyst at the Lowy Institute, an Australian think tank.
News Edit KV Raman
