Lalit Modi controversy: No threat to life as ED prepares red-corner notice
New Delhi, June 16: The Enforcement Directorate is likely to press for a red-corner notice against former IPL chairman, Lalit Modi.
The ED which wants to probe him under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act says that on the basis of the red-corner notice, they would want to extradite and then probe him.
Currently there is a blue-corner notice against Lalit Modi which has been issued after violations under the Foreign Exchange Management Act were found.
The case against Lalit Modi
The Mumbai division of the Enforcement Directorate is probing a case filed in the year 2010 by the BCCI. The BCCI had filed a case alleging misappropriation of funds by Modi.
The ED has however not been able to question Modi as he had left India. ED officials are now planning on sending show cause notices to Modi under the provisions of the Foreign Exchange Management Act.
What is a blue-corner Notice?
The ED says that there is a blue-corner notice that has been issued against Lalit Modi. However Lalit Modi's advocate denies that such a notice has been issued.
A blue-corner notice is generally a notice for inquiry. It is issued to verify an individual's identity or to locate a person who is missing. The notice is basically sent to the Interpol and in turn the agency issuing such a notice can seek the extradition of the persons.
However a red-corner notice is even more serious. If the ED manages to have the red-corner notice issued, then the person can be arrested and extradited.
The ED feels that the case has been pending since a long time now and for them to question Lalit Modi, they would need to first issue a red-corner notice against him.
The threat to Lalit Modi
It was in the year 2010 that Lalit Modi left for London. He had cited that there was a threat to his life and hence was moving out of India.
In the year 2009, the Intelligence Bureau of Maharashtra had stated that there was a threat to his life from the underworld. However in 2010, the perception of the threat was reviewed and the security which was granted to Lalit Modi and his family was withdrawn.
Lalit Modi then got a threat assessment done by a Hong Kong based company which in its report stated that he was under threat from the Indian Mujahideen.
Intelligence Bureau officials tell OneIndia that the threat assessment of Lalit Modi has been done several times after 2010 as well. There is absolutely no threat perception at the moment and he can come back to India safely.
OneIndia News