Case against Lalit Modi: ED gets court nod to begin extradition

The latest court nod to ED was approved by Judge P R Bhavake of the sessions court. Bhavake had in August 2015 issued a non-bailable warrant against Modi in connection with the money laundering case.

Soon after the warrant was issued, ED had placed a request with Interpol to issue a Red Corner Notice (RCN) against Modi. The RCN is an international lookout notice for a fugitive. Interpol, however, has not yet taken a decision on ED’s request. The global agency has had multiple communications with ED, during which it has sought all documents pertaining to the probe.

The PMLA case against Modi is based on a criminal complaint filed by BCCI in 2010, accusing him of misappropriating funds during his tenure as IPL chief.

ED has sought details from Modi on his role in the deal between World Sports Group, Mauritius and Multi Screen Media Singapore. According to the ED petition, in 2008, BCCI awarded 10-year media rights to WSG India for $642 million and MSMS for $276 million for certain geographies. In March 2009, Modi terminated the contract with MSMS for violating some rules and signed a fresh agreement with WSG Mauritius without following any tender process, it was alleged.

According to ED, Modi “was not authorised to terminate the media rights contract with MSMS.” He also didn’t follow any tender process or obtain approval from the IPL governing council for signing the deal with WSG Mauritius.

So far, ED has registered 16 cases against Modi. Of these, 15 are under provisions of FEMA and one under PMLA.