Lalit Modi acquires Vanuatu citizenship, applies to surrender Indian passport | Latest News India

NEW DELHI: Former Indian Premier League (IPL) commissioner Lalit Modi, the subject of an Enforcement Directorate (ED) investigation into alleged money laundering, has applied to surrender his Indian passport after acquiring citizenship of Vanuatu, the external affairs ministry said on Friday.

Indian authorities are pursuing the case against Lalit Modi as “required under law”, external affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal told a media briefing.

Lalit Modi’s application to the Indian high commission in London for surrendering his passport will be “examined in light of extant rules and procedures”, Jaiswal said, without specifying when the request was made.

“We are also given to understand that he has acquired citizenship of Vanuatu. We continue to pursue the case against him as required under law,” he said.

Lalit Modi is not a wanted person in the UK. The ED is investigating money laundering charges against him, based on a complaint filed by Chennai Police in 2012 for alleged cheating in the T-20 tournament’s overseas telecast rights.

ED’s request to issue an Interpol red notice against Lalit Modi was rejected in 2015. The current status of the probe against him is not known and the former IPL commissioner has never joined the investigation.