India blocked return of illegal migrants because 'alleged fraudster was not extradited', Priti Patel says

Dame Priti Patel has revealed that India deliberately obstructed the deportation of thousands of illegal migrants to the UK as a direct response to Britain's inability to extradite Nirav Modi.

Mr Modi is a diamond tycoon accused of perpetrating the country's largest-ever financial fraud.

Speaking on The Telegraph's podcast series The Diamond King, the former home secretary said she was "appalled and horrified" that Mr Modi remained on British soil more than seven years after his arrest in London, describing the Indian government as "hugely angry" over the continued failure to return him to face trial.

Modi, now 55, stands accused of stealing £1.3billion from an Indian bank, allegedly using the proceeds to finance an extravagant lifestyle and establish luxury jewellery boutiques across the globe.

He denies all wrongdoing, maintaining that the substantial sums borrowed from Indian banks would have been repaid had authorities not raided his premises.

After vanishing following fraud charges in 2019, he was discovered residing in an upmarket London flat while operating a fresh diamond venture.

Since his arrest that year, he has remained behind bars in Britain, spending upwards of £1million hiring the country's leading barristers to resist extradition.

Dame Priti, who approved Modi's extradition in 2021, revealed that Delhi would "really push back" during her tenure by creating difficulties verifying the identities of Indians whom Britain sought to remove, while also refusing to accept charter flights carrying failed asylum seekers and overstayers - arrangements other nations readily agreed to.

She said: "I had a hell of a challenge getting them to sign off on receiving failed asylum seekers."

The former home secretary added she was "convinced" India withheld cooperation because it held "leverage" over Britain through the unresolved high-profile cases.

She branded the situation "a flagrant abuse of our system" and "an insult to British taxpayers."

The diplomatic damage has been compounded by a second unresolved extradition case.

Vijay Mallya, the 70-year-old former head of an Indian business empire encompassing Kingfisher beer and its namesake airline, continues to live freely between a country estate and a London mansion while contesting his own extradition.

Mr Modi's efforts to remain in Britain have extended beyond extradition appeals to include a separate asylum application, which has since been refused by both the Home Office and the courts.

During his detention, he has also received NHS care for eyesight problems, while his incarceration has cost taxpayers roughly £500,000.

Figures for the year ending March 2026 show that of 3,089 Indian nationals placed in immigration detention, fewer than a quarter, just 737, were actually sent home.

Back in 2020, Home Office data revealed that 20,706 Indians had exceeded the terms of their visas, the highest figure for any nationality, though it is understood these statistics are no longer made public.

Dame Priti said: "You have people like Modi gaming the system because you can pay the big bucks to the lawyers and that's simply not right."