External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday stated that the United Kingdom needs to take a responsible view with regard to the extradition of fugitive economic offenders. The minister said the UK will end up being seen as a "haven for tax evaders and tax defaulters" if the country does not address the matter.
The Union Minister stressed that India has strongly presented its case regarding the extradition of high-profile fugitive economic offenders who have fled the country to the UK.
"That is a question which mostly we need to ask the UK because that's where the high profile people have gone. And we have presented our case strongly. As you can see, multiple rounds of legal proceedings have gone in our favour,” the minister said in an interview with news agency ANI.
Specifically commenting on the extradition of Indian fugitive offenders Mehul Choksi and Nirav Modi from the UK, Jaishankar said that India continues to "press very, very strongly" for their return, adding that “they obviously use all sorts of arguments.”
"And I think it is incumbent on the authorities (there) to take a responsible view of it. There's a reputational implication for them. I mean, they will end up being seen as a haven for tax evaders and tax defaulters," he further stated.
Businessman Mehul Choksi and his nephew Nirav Modi are wanted in connection with a more than Rs 14,000 crore Punjab National Bank (PNB) scam. Choksi currently resides in Antigua and Barbuda, where he holds citizenship, while Nirav Modi is currently in a UK jail awaiting extradition.
Another high-profile fugitive, Vijay Mallya, a liquor baron accused in a bank loan default case of over Rs 9,000 crore, is also in the UK.
