Interpol seeks answers over wanted man Indian prosecutors believe is in Malta

Interpol has sought answers from India’s criminal prosecutors at the Enforcement Directorate (ED) about evidence it has against a wanted entrepreneur it believes has absconded to Malta.

According to reports, Interpol has yet to validate reasons for a red corner notice against former cricket czar Lalit Modi.

The ED received the query from Interpol on 20 August, which asked to know if there is ample evidence against the former Indian Premier League czar Modi, who was also said to be in exile in London.

They have also sought the details of the other accused in the case and the offence under which the case has been registered. 

A red corner notice may enable Interpol to detain and bring Modi back to India from Malta, where he is said to be staying right now. India’s Central Bureau of Investigation had recently sent documents to Interpol to process the red-corner notice against Modi.

A non-bailable arrest warrant was also issued against Modi by a Mumbai court over his alleged involvement in financial irregularities in the IPL.

Modi fled India about five years ago over charges pertaining to IPL money laundering. Modi, born in Delhi in 1963, was the first chairman and commissioner of the IPL, running the tournament for three years until 2010. 

Shortly after 2010, Modi was suspended from the Board of Control for Cricket in India after being accused of misconduct, indiscipline and financial irregularities. The BCCI launched an investigation against him, and banned him for life in 2013 after a committee found him guilty of the charges. Modi denied any wrongdoing, and blamed accusations on political rivalries.

As of 2015, the ED has not found Modi guilty of any financial irregularities. The Indian government revoked his passport in 2010, but the decision was overturned by the High Court in 2014.

As a scion of a leading business family, Modi is the president and managing director of Modi Enterprises and the executive director of Godfrey Phillips India.

India’s ED claims Interpol cannot ask a sovereign nation for details of investigation once it submits a request for a red corner notice. “Interpol is a mere facilitating agency. It is also unheard of that Interpol gives an opportunity for submission to someone who is a subject of RCN,” an ED source told the Indian Express.