38 people named by CBI in bank frauds fled India between Jan 2015 and Dec 2019: FinMin

Thirty eight people being investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for financial frauds fled the country in the four-year period between January 1, 2015 and December 31, 2019, the finance ministry has said.

The government also noted that the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has informed that applications for Red Corner Notices against 20 people, under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, have been filed with the Interpol.

In addition to this, extradition requests for 14 people have been sent to various countries, while applications under the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act, 2018, had been filed against 11 people.

The details were provided in response to an unstarred question during the Monsson Session on September 14, in which Congress leader Dean Kuriakose had sought data available with the government on businessmen who had fled the country after defrauding banks, and the number of such cases reported during the last five years.

Responding to the question, Minister of State for Finance Anurag Thakur said, "The CBI has apprised that 38 persons involved in the cases registered by the probe agency related to financial irregularities with banks fled the country during 1.1.2015 to 31.12.2019. Action is taken as per law in all such cases."

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A red corner notice is a request to law enforcement worldwide to locate and provisionally arrest a person pending extradition, surrender, or similar legal action. It is published by the Interpol at the request of a member country.

As per public data available on the Interpol's website, Red Corner Notices have been issued for fugitive diamantaire Nirav Modi and businessman Mehul Choksi, both of whom are wanted in India in connection with the Rs 14,000 crore Punjab National Bank (PNB) scam.

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Once the 'king of good times' and now fighting his extradition to India, former owner of the now defunct Kingfisher Airlines Vijay Mallya is also one among the many fugitive economic offenders. He fled the country after defrauding a consortium of banks to the tune of Rs 9,000 crore.