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Vanuatu Prime Minister Jotham Napat directed the country's Citizenship Commission to cancel the Vanuatu passport issued to former Indian Premier League (IPL) commissioner, Lalit Modi following recent revelations in international media, as per Vanuatu Daily Post.
The cancellation of the passport was based on reports in the international media which suggested that Lalit Modi was avoiding extradition to India. A statement from the office of the Prime Minister's office said that since the Interpol had twice rejected request for an alert on Lalit Modi the application of a Vanuatu Passport was not rejected and standard background check did not show any criminal conviction. Lalit Modi, who previously served as the vice-president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), is accused of alleged bid-rigging, money laundering, and violating the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 (FEMA). He left India in 2010 while under investigation for alleged financial misconduct, including unauthorized fund transfers. On March 7, while responding to a question on reports that Lalit Modi had acquired the citizenship of Vanuatu, the Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal stated that they are aware of his application for surrendering his passport in the High Commission of India in London and they are continuing to pursue all cases against him as per the law. The Spokesperson further added, "The same will be examined in light of extant rules and procedures. We are also informed that he has acquired citizenship in Vanuatu. We continue to pursue the case against him as required under law." The Prime Minister emphasised that holding a Vanuatu passport is a privilege, not a right, and applicants must seek citizenship for legitimate reasons, as per the statement. Earlier in a post on X on March 8 Lalit Modi wrote, "No court of law in India has a case pending against me personally. It's only media fiction. Fifteen years have gone. But they keep saying we are going after me - more than welcome to. But first file an application for any wrongdoing, instead of just imagining that I have been charge with something wrong.... This is called fake news.... Only thing that I have done single handedly is create a global loved product called IPL which you lap it up like there is no tomorrow." Lalit Modi is currently based in London and had applied to surrender his Indian passport on acquiring Citizenship of Vanuatu. (ANI)
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