A New York Bankruptcy Court Dismisses Nirav Modi & His Associates' Plea Seeking Dismissal Of Fraud Charges

<p><strong>New Delhi:</strong> In a big blow to the diamond merchant Nirav Modi petition, a bankruptcy court in New York rejected the plea of the fugitive and his associates seeking dismissal of fraud allegations against them.</p> <p>Nirav Modi, who is currently lodged in jail in the UK, is challenging India's attempts to extradite him to face charges of fraud and money laundering in the Punjab National Bank (PNB) scam case.</p> <p><strong>What were the allegations?</strong></p> <p>The allegations in the US are made by Richard Levin, the court-appointed trustee of three US corporations &mdash; Firestar Diamond, Fantasy Inc, and A Jaffe &mdash; indirectly owned by Nirav Modi.</p> <p><strong>READ: <a href="https://ift.tt/3C9zNGl Tejasvi Surya Hits Out At Fabindia Campaign, Says 'Deepavali Isn&rsquo;t Jashn-e-Riwaaz&rsquo;</a></strong></p> <p>Levin demanded a minimum compensation of $15 million for &ldquo;harm&rdquo; suffered by the debtors of Modi and his associates Mihir Bhansali and Ajay Gandhi.</p> <p>In a clear decision, the Southern District of New York Bankruptcy Court Judge Sean H Lane denied defendants Modi, Bhansali, and Gandhi&rsquo;s motions to dismiss US Trustee Richard Levin's amended complaint, Indian American attorney Ravi Batra told PTI.</p> <p>According to the order, Batra said Modi plowed his profits back into his own company as additional sales to falsely raise the stock price or company valuation by setting up a scheme to defraud Punjab National Bank and others of over $1 billion.</p>