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Nirav Modi, successful situation for implicit six years, has told a United Kingdom tribunal determination are “sensational developments” to travel erstwhile his Indian extradition case connected fraud and wealth laundering charges reopens for a proceeding successful London adjacent month.
The 54-year-old fugitive diamantaire appeared successful the dock earlier High Court Judge Simon Tinkler astatine the Royal Courts of Justice successful London connected Friday (October 17, 2025) to contiguous his defence successful an unrelated case, involving an implicit $8 cardinal unpaid Bank of India debt.
The Judge turned down Mr. Modi’s exertion for a enactment connected the proceedings connected the grounds of method and aesculapian constraints successful prison, which is acceptable to proceed to a proceedings scheduled successful January 2026.
“They (Bank of India) notation to my extradition… I’m inactive here. There volition beryllium immoderate sensational developments, and I person ne'er utilized these words before,” said Mr. Modi, during a pre-trial reappraisal hearing.
The fugitive diamond merchant, wanted successful India successful the estimated $2 billion Punjab National Bank (PNB) indebtedness scam case, told the tribunal helium was “extremely hopeful” of either being discharged oregon granted bail aft the tribunal agreed to judge caller grounds contempt a “high bar” successful specified matters.
The U.K.’s Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has confirmed that Nirav Modi “has lodged an exertion to reopen his (extradition) appeal”, with the Indian authorities submitting their effect up of a proceeding expected towards the extremity of November.
Defending himself arsenic a “litigant successful person”, Mr. Modi work from copious handwritten notes arsenic helium addressed the Judge. Officers sat defender arsenic their prisoner, dressed successful a worn-out achromatic t-shirt and pinkish way pants, spoke successful mumbled tones astir struggles with his eyesight and lengthy delays implicit entree to a machine down bars, which helium stressed made immoderate proceedings unfair and imbalanced.
“I recognize this is an adversarial process, and they (Bank of India) tin accidental thing against me. But they support connected making assumptions; I would say, walk 1 time successful prison… There needs to beryllium immoderate basal communal sense,” helium said, appearing to suffer his calm astatine 1 stage.
Bank of India, represented by barrister Tom Beasley and RWK Goodman’s Milan Kapadia, are pursuing Mr. Modi’s idiosyncratic warrant related to a indebtedness to Dubai-incorporated Firestar Diamond FZE. They argued that a enactment connected the proceedings would beryllium unfair to the bank, arsenic it would propulsion the long-pending assertion disconnected indefinitely.
“If helium is extradited, helium volition apt stay successful custody… He volition besides beryllium successful a antithetic clip zone,” Beasley told the court, adding that the slope “remains sceptical” astir Mr. Modi’s “claimed deficiency of funds”.
Justice Tinkler ruled that connected equilibrium the request to sphere the court’s timetable outweighs different considerations and that each efforts to guarantee an “equality of arms” successful the lawsuit person been made.
“It is wide that immoderate (medical) issues bash impact his quality to enactment and will, successful each likelihood, impact his quality to enactment successful the proceedings without tenable adjustments being made,” the Judge said, referencing a confidential aesculapian study submitted to him.
However, with the proceedings listed for 7 days successful January, the Judge concluded that it was capable clip to marque adjustments to conscionable each aesculapian needs.
He besides noted that the situation authorities person indicated that a machine volition beryllium made disposable to Mr. Modi successful a week’s time, adjacent arsenic hard copies of each documents volition beryllium sent implicit to him up of different pre-trial proceeding successful aboriginal December.
Mr. Modi’s in-person tribunal quality aft caller video links followed a “production order” by the court. It triggered immoderate ineligible complexity of its ain towards the extremity of the day-long hearing, arsenic Mr. Modi had to beryllium sent to HMP Pentonville situation successful northbound London.
The businessman appeared apprehensive astir this displacement from HMP Thameside successful southbound London, wherever helium has been lodged implicit the past fewer months, and appealed for the tribunal to see a single-occupancy compartment petition successful the tribunal order.
The Judge said portion that was not wrong the court’s purview, helium had added directions for either each his paperwork to beryllium moved implicit to him oregon for him to beryllium returned to Thameside astatine the earliest.
Also read: PNB-Nirav Modi lawsuit | Chronology of events
Nirav Modi has been down bars successful London since his apprehension successful March 2019 and has made respective bail attempts, which person each been rejected connected the grounds of him posing a formation hazard — astir precocious successful May this year.
There are 3 sets of transgression proceedings against him successful India — the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) lawsuit of PNB fraud, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) lawsuit relating to the alleged laundering of the proceeds of that fraud and a 3rd acceptable of transgression proceedings involving alleged interference with grounds and witnesses successful the CBI proceedings.
In April 2021, past U.K. location caput Priti Patel had ordered his extradition to look these charges successful the Indian courts aft a prima facie lawsuit was established against him. He had since exhausted his ineligible avenues to contention the bid until recently, erstwhile his exertion to reopen his entreaty was accepted successful the UK and is acceptable to beryllium heard adjacent month.
