Tihar Jail inspected by UK team amid India’s bid to repatriate Mallya, Nirav Modi

UK team inspects Tihar Jail amid extradition push for Mallya, Nirav Modi.

New Delhi – A delegation from the UK’s Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) inspected Tihar Jail this week as part of India’s ongoing efforts to secure the extradition of fugitives Vijay Mallya and Nirav Modi.

Officials said the team visited Jail No. 4, interacted with inmates, and reviewed infrastructure and security arrangements. The inspection comes after UK courts previously flagged concerns over Indian prison conditions while considering extradition cases.

To address those concerns, India has assured the UK that all extradited individuals will be kept in safe, lawful custody. Authorities also conveyed that a separate high-security enclave could be created in Tihar to house sensitive prisoners if required.

India currently has 178 pending extradition requests, including around 20 linked to fugitives based in Britain. Among them are Mallya, accused of defaulting on bank loans of over ₹9,000 crore, and Nirav Modi, the main accused in the ₹13,800 crore Punjab National Bank fraud. Modi has already been declared a fugitive economic offender, and his extradition was cleared by a UK court.

Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri recently said India is working closely with UK authorities to bring back several wanted individuals at the earliest.