Vanuatu Prime Minister Jotham Napat has directed the Citizenship Commission to cancel the Vanuatu passport issued to former Indian Premier League (IPL) chief Lalit Modi. This decision comes after recent international media revelations concerning Mr. Modi.
"I have instructed the Citizenship Commission to immediately begin proceedings to cancel Modi's Vanuatu passport," stated Prime Minister Napat.
Lalit Modi filed an application with the Indian High Commission to surrender his Indian passport. He acquired the citizenship of Vanuatu, an island country in South Pacific. Since leaving India in 2010, Modi was living in London, as per reports.
The move underscores the government's stance on upholding rigorous standards in its Citizenship by Investment Programme, which requires applicants to seek citizenship for legitimate reasons, not to avoid extradition.
During Modi's citizenship application, all standard background checks, including Interpol screenings, showed no criminal convictions. The IPL chief is wanted for embezzlement of crores of rupees during his stint as the top boss of the tournament,
However, Prime Minister Napat revealed that in the past 24 hours, he was informed that Interpol had twice rejected requests from Indian authorities to issue an alert notice on Modi due to insufficient judicial evidence.
"Any such alert would have triggered an automatic rejection of Modi's citizenship application," noted the Prime Minister, highlighting the importance of substantive evidence in such procedures.
The Vanuatu government emphasises that holding a passport from the country is a privilege rather than a right. Moreover, there hasn't been much progress on India's request for Modi's extradition.
The Prime Minister stated, "None of those legitimate reasons include attempting to avoid extradition, which the recent facts brought to light clearly indicate was Modi's intention." This statement aligns with Vanuatu's strengthened due diligence in citizenship applications, ensuring applicants meet the country's stringent criteria.
Over the past four years, Vanuatu has enhanced its Citizenship by Investment Programme's due diligence measures. These improvements have led to a significant increase in applications failing the scrutiny of the Vanuatu Financial Intelligence Unit.
The more rigorous process includes triple-agency checks, such as Interpol verification, to ensure applicants meet all legal and ethical standards before granting citizenship. These measures aim to protect the integrity of Vanuatu's citizenship process and maintain its international standing.