A special court in Mumbai has issued a public notice to fugitive diamond merchant Nirav Modi, wanted in India for alleged fraud and money laundering in the PNB scam case, asking why his properties should not be confiscated under the Fugitive Economic Offenders (FEO) Act.
Special Judge VC Barde has also asked Modi to appear before the court on June 11.
The court said if the accused failed to appear, it will proceed with action against him under the FEO Act.
The special court had in December 2019 declared Nirav Modi a fugitive economic offender, on a plea of the Enforcement Directorate (ED), which is conducting a probe into the case.
"I, VC Barde, Special Judge, PMLA, 2002 and Fugitive Economic Offenders Act, 2018, issue NOTICE to you to show cause as to why the properties mentioned in the application (ED's plea), in which you have pecuniary interest and/or otherwise, should not be confiscated under the said Act," the recent notice said.
A similar notice was also issued to Nirav Modi's wife Ami, sister Purvi and brother-in-law Maiank Mehta.
The notice said the family members have been enumerated as "interested person" in the application.
The investigating agency has alleged that Nirav Modi and his uncle Mehul Choksi, in connivance with certain bank officials, allegedly cheated the Punjab National Bank (PNB) to the tune of Rs 14,000 crore through issuance of fraudulent Letters of Undertaking (LoUs).
The LoUs were allegedly issued in a fraudulent manner by a Mumbai branch of the PNB to a group of companies belonging to Nirav Modi since March 2011, till the case came to light.
Under the FEO Act, a person can be declared a fugitive economic offender if a warrant has been issued against him for an offence involving an amount of Rs 100 crore or more and he has left the country and refuses to return.
At PM Modi's Meet With UK PM, Push To Extradite Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi Probe Agency Attaches Fresh Assets Of Fugitive Nirav Modi Worth Rs 29.75 Crore Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi Fled As Probe Agencies Didn't Arrest Them At Proper Time: Court Amazon Employee Greets Friend At Wedding, Dies Of Cardiac Arrest Russia's Firing Of ICBM On Ukraine Is Weapon's 1st Combat Use In History This Asian City Is Emerging As Sex Tourism Hub. It's Not Where You Think PM Modi: Culture, Cuisine, Cricket Strengthen India-Guyana Ties Elon Musk Slams Australia's Plan To Ban Social Media For Kids Under 16 Assam Chief Minister Unveils These Facilities At Legislative Complex Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.