A UK
court on Thursday will deliver its ruling on India’s wanted diamond merchant
Nirav Modi’s extradition to India, who faces charges of fraud and money laundering
of estimated Rs 13,000 crore (2 billion dollars) in connection with Punjab National Bank (PNB)
scam. The legal battle has been going on for nearly two
years.

The 49-year-old fugitive will appear before District
Judge Samuel Goozee of London’s Westminster Magistrates’ Court, who will deliver judgment on whether Modi has a case to
be tried on in India, via a video link.

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Modi, a well known diamond merchant, is the subject of two sets of criminal proceedings—a
fraud case with the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) pertaining to
fraudulent obtainment of letters of undertaking (LoUs) or loan agreements from
PNB and another case of money laundering with the Enforcement Directorate.

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The 49-year-old also faces two additional charges of “causing the disappearance of evidence” and intimidating witnesses or “criminal intimidation to cause death. These are added on to the CBI case

Modi was arrested on an extradition warrant on March 19, 2019 in London.

The government of India is being represented by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), who have sought to establish a prima facie case against Modi and ascertain that there are no human rights issues blocking his extradition to India. 

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Fugitive Modi, on the other hand, is being defended by barrister Clare Montgomery and his team. The defence claims that the issue amounts to commercial dispute, which involves “authorised though ill-advised lending” that took place in “broad daylight”. 

The defence also argues that none of Modi’s action meet the legal requirement of what amounts to fraud.

Modi’s uncle Mehul Choksi is also an accused in the case, which first came to public attention when PNB filed a case in January 2018 alleging fraud by Modi and others.