List of fugitive economic offenders in India does not end with Vijay Mallya

In reply to Lok Sabha in 2020, SP Shukla said 72 Indians charged with financial irregularities have been living abroad. The list includes names like Nirav Modi, Mehul Choksi and Lalit Modi

The Supreme Court of India declared its verdict in a contempt case against liquor baron Vijay Mallya on Monday and awarded him a sentence of 4 months in jail. It also imposed a fine of Rs 2,000. Mallya has been declared a fugitive economic offender (FEO) by the government of India under the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act, 2018, for defaulting on repayment of loans worth over Rs 9,000 crore. He had taken the loans for the now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines. Mallya fled India and has been living in the UK since 2016.

But Mallya is not the only fugitive economic offender. In a reply in Lok Sabha in 2020, minister SP Shukla said that 72 Indians charged with financial irregularities have been living abroad. The list includes names like Nirav Modi, Mehul Choksi and Lalit Modi. To bring them back, the centre needs to abide by extradition rules. In most cases, the help of the International Police (Interpol) is sought.

Here is a look at the biggest fraudsters, apart from Mallya, that have been declared FEO by the centre:

Nirav Modi

Modi, a jeweller and designer, has been accused of cheating the Punjab National Bank (PNB) of Rs 14,000 crore. It is dubbed as one of the biggest banking frauds in Indian history. Modi used fake letters of undertaking (LoUs) to import pearls to India. It was later revealed that PNB's Brady House branch in Fort, Mumbai, had also violated regulations while offering Modi the LoUs. He is currently in the UK and seeking political asylum.

Mehul Choksi

Mehul is Nirav Modi’s uncle and was party to the PNB scam. He was the owner of Gitanjali Group, a retail jewellery firm. He has been charged with money laundering, criminal breach of trust, corruption and criminal conspiracy. He has been living in Antigua and Barbuda since 2018, where he holds citizenship. In 2021, he went missing from the country and later surfaced in Dominica. He was denied entry into the country.

Lalit Modi

Modi is the man who introduced the Indian Premier League (IPL) to the world. He is the main accused in the MSM and WSG facilitation fee scam. The scam took place when Lalit was the IPL Commissioner. After the media rights auction, the then MSM (Multi Screen Media Limited, now Sony Pictures Networks India) approached BCCI. It informed that it had awarded the media rights of telecasting IPL to World Sports Group (WSG) Mauritius. MSM also said that if WSG paid a facilitation fee of Rs. 425 crores to WSG, it would transfer its rights. MSM and WSG Mauritius then entered a contract, and MSM initially paid Rs. 125 crores. The amount was transferred to an account in Mauritius.

However, there was no such agreement between BCCI and WSG. These contracts were negotiated only by Lalit Modi. Several reports claimed that Lalit Modi might be a beneficiary of the Rs 125 crore.

He is also in the UK, seeking asylum.

Neeshal Modi

Modi is the brother of Nirav Modi. He is married to Isheta Salgaocar, niece of Mukesh and Anil Ambani. He is also one of the accused in the PNB Scam. In 2018, the CBI asked the Ministry of Home Affairs to extradite him from Belgium, where he is a citizen. He is said to be a beneficiary owner of many dummy entities and LoUs. In 2020, he wrote to the Enforcement Directorate (ED), distancing himself from Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi.

Nitin J. Sandesara and family

Sandesaras is the owner of Gujarat-based Sterling Biotech. He has been declared an FEO for defaulting on Rs 5,000 crore taken from Andhra Bank. The scam ballooned to R 81,000 crore. Chetan Sandesara, Dipti Sandesara, and Hitesh Narendrabhai Patel are also accused in this case.

Hajra Iqbal Memon

The widow of late gangster Iqbal Mirchi, Hajra Memon, was declared an FEO along with her sons Asif and Junaid in 2021. Mirchi was considered the right-hand man of wanted terrorist Dawood Ibrahim. Memons have been accused of using illegally obtained money to buy properties across Mumbai. Until 2021, ED had attached properties worth Rs 800 crore in the case. The family lives abroad, but their whereabouts are largely unknown.

The list of FEOs does not end with Vijay Mallya. It goes long, and ED has a lot on its plate to deal with.