Interpol issues Red corner notice against Nirav Modi: What it means

New Delhi: The Interpol on Monday issued a Red Corner Notice (RCN) against diamond jeweller Nirav Modi, who is one of the accused in the Rs 13,500 crore Punjab National Bank fraud.

On June 11, the CBI approached the Interpol to issue a RCN against Nirav Modi. On June 13, it again approached the Interpol to issue a RCN against Nirav Modi's brother Nishal, who is a Belgian national, and his executive Subhash Parab. The CBI sent the request to the Interpol after it filed the first chargesheet naming Nirav Modi, Nishal and Parab beside 18 others in a special court in Mumbai on May 14.

Nirav Modi left the country along with his family in the first week of January, weeks before the scam was reported to the CBI.

His wife Ami, a US citizen, left on January 6 and Choksi on January 4.

What is Red Corner Notice

A Red Corner Notice issued by Interpol urges its member countries to detain or arrest an accused, who is wanted in a country. It is the most commonly used notice and Interpol issued 12,878 RCN in 2016. It is, however, not an international arrest warrant.

The red notice is a request to locate and provisionally arrest an individual pending extradition. RCN is issued by the General Secretariat at the request of a member country or an international tribunal based on a valid national arrest warrant.

It must be noted that Interpol cannot compel any member country to arrest any individual who is the subject of a Red Notice. It is upon the member country to decide as to what legal value it wants to give a Red Notice within their borders.

With Agency Inputs