UK court denies bail to Nirav Modi, will be in custody till March 29

Mumbai: UK court on Wednesday denied bail to Fugitive businessman Nirav Modi and remanded him in custody till March 29.

UK judge said, "Substantial grounds to believe Nirav Modi would fail to surrender if granted bail."

Nirav Modi was arrested and produced before Westminster Magistrates' Court in London.

The police stated that Modi was picked up from the Holborn Metro Station on Tuesday afternoon.

The arrest came days after a London court issued a warrant against him in response to a request by India's Enforcement Directorate for his extradition in a money-laundering case.

“Nirav Deepak Modi, 48 (Date of Birth 24.02.71), was arrested on behalf of the Indian Authorities on Tuesday on 19 March, in Holborn," the London Metropolitan Police said in a statement.

The arrest warrant was issued by the Westminster Court, sources said.

The location of the arrest indicates that Nirav Modi, wanted in India in connection with the Rs 13,500 crore Punjab National Bank scam, was arrested from where he is believed to have been living in a plush apartment in Centre Point in West End.

The Central Bureau of Investigation is probing the PNB scam, which involved fake guarantees in the name of the state-run lender to secure loans overseas.

Nirav Modi’s arrest is seen as the first stage of the legal process for extradition.

Nirav Modi’s presence was recently figured in a video released by The Daily Telegraph, walking on London streets and responding to queries by its reporters with a “No comment.”

The 48-year-old billionaire had skipped the country last year, weeks before the detection of the Rs 13,000 crore Punjab National Bank scam. His relative Mehul Choksi, who was also wanted in the case, was granted citizenship of Antigua and Barbuda on January 15, 2018.