Mumbai, April 26:  The Punjab National Bank (PNB) loan defaulter Nirav Modi has fled to New York from Hong Kong, as per the CNN - News 18 news report. The uncle-nephew diamantaire duo of Mehul Choksi fled the country in January, days before the multi-thousand-crore scandal came to light.

The central probe agencies are struggling to trace the duo, who have collectively defrauded the PNB of over Rs 13,000 crore. The scam was perpetrated in connivance with senior bank officials, who issued the fraudulent Letter of Undertakings (LoUs).

According to the report, Modi first fled to the UAE from Mumbai, from where he moved to Hong Kong in the third week of March. After the Indian government took up the matter with Chinese authorities to request for his provisional arrest, Modi fled to London and subsequently to New York in the United States.

The Indian government had asked the Chinese government to extradite Modi to India after reports of him being in Hong Kong were reported. In reply, the Chinese government assured India that the autonomous government in Hong Kong is free to extradite Nirav, and added that it would not be a roadblock. But before the authorities could pursue the matter further, Modi moved to London.

The PNB had also moved a recovery writ in a Hong Kong court against Nirav Modi for an amount over $5 million.

Notably, the Indian government impounded the passports of Modi and his uncle Mehul in February. Questions remain unanswered on how the diamond merchants managed to change locations with ease.

As per procedure, once the passports are impounded, the person cannot move to a different location.

The duo's passports were suspended in February after an FIR was registered against them by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in connection to the PNB fraud case.

There is a possibility that Modi may have procured a Belgian passport while holding an Indian citizenship, and using it, he may have fled to New York, reports claim. It is to be noted that dual citizenship is outlawed in India and holding another country's passport along with India is against the law.

In addition, the Narendra Modi Cabinet on April 21, approved the Fugitive Economic Offenders Ordinance 2018 that allows confiscating properties of corporate escapees. Under the new Bill, properties within or outside India may be subject to seizure or confiscation by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) or the Enforcement Directorate (ED).

Also, with this Ordinance, corporate fugitives would be forced to return to India to face trial for scheduled offences. This would also help the banks and other financial institutions to achieve higher recovery from financial defaults committed by such offenders, improving the financial health of such institutions.

(Edited by Mohammed Uzair)

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 26, 2018 04:59 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).