Fugitive Nirav Modi loses final legal battle, clears way for extradition from London to India, could return anytime


The troubles of diamond merchant Nirav Modi, who fled the country after defrauding Punjab National Bank (PNB) of billions of rupees, have now reached their final stage. Nirav Modi has also completely lost his last legal battle in the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR). After this historic decision, the way for his return and extradition from Britain to India has been completely cleared. According to legal documents, all the international and local legal options available to Nirav Modi have now been completely exhausted and the British government can hand him over to India at any time.

Appeal was made secretly in April, got a big blow from human rights court also

After facing a major setback from the lower courts and High Court of Britain, Nirav Modi approached the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in April 2026. The court had initially kept this petition completely secret. To protect himself in the British courts, Nirav Modi had cited the famous ‘Bhandari Judgment’, in which extradition was refused in the case of defense broker Sanjay Bhandari on the basis of fear of torture in Indian jails. Nirav also gave the same argument that his life could be in danger and he could be tortured in Indian jails. However, officials of the Indian investigating agency CBI presented strong evidence and government assurances about the prison conditions in the court, after which the British High Court and now the ECHR completely rejected these claims of Nirav Modi.

The mastermind of the PNB scam is lodged in London’s Wandsworth jail since March 2019.

Nirav Modi has been continuously lodged in the infamous ‘Wandsworth Prison’ in London since his arrest in March 2019. In India, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) have been looking for him for a long time in the Punjab National Bank (PNB) mega scam and money laundering cases. The British court, in its final remarks, clearly said that Nirav Modi’s case is not an extraordinary case or a case of human rights violation and there is no solid basis for reopening this case.

Diplomatic formalities started, ready to bring Indian investigative agencies

According to diplomatic and diplomatic sources, after getting the green signal from the International Court, the British Home Ministry and administrative officials have accelerated the final process of handing over Nirav Modi to the Indian authorities. Now only some paper and administrative formalities are left in this high-profile case. Indian security and investigative agencies can fly to London any time and Nirav Modi can be brought to Mumbai or Delhi and brought before the law.