New Delhi: Former Indian Premier League (IPL) chairman Lalit Modi on Monday tendered an apology following backlash over a video he posted featuring himself and businessman Vijay Mallya, where they jokingly referred to themselves as the “two biggest fugitives of India”.
The clip, shared on Instagram during Mallya’s 70th birthday celebrations in London, went viral last week and triggered widespread outrage on social media, with users accusing the duo, who left India in 2010 and 2016 respectively, of undermining India’s justice system.
Taking to his x handle, Modi claimed the remarks were misunderstood and were not meant to offend, particularly emphasising his respect for the Indian government. “I apologise if I have hurt anyone feelings especially the Indian Government who I have the highest respect and regard for. The statement was misconstrued and was never intended to be as played out. Once again my deepest apologies,” he wrote.
He, however, did not specify what he was apologising for.
After the video surfaced, t
he Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) swiftly responded, reaffirming India’s commitment to extraditing fugitives. “We remain fully committed that people who are fugitives and are wanted by law in India return to the country. For this particular return, we are in talks with several governments, and processes are on. In several of these cases, there are several layers of legalities involved. But we remain committed to bringing them back to the country so that they can face trial before the courts here,” MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said during a weekly media briefing in New Delhi.
Shortly after IPL 2010 ended, Modi was suspended from BCCI after being accused of misconduct, indiscipline and financial irregularities. He fled to London in May 2010. The ED began probing Modi, the IPL and its executives for alleged violation of anti-money laundering laws after registering a criminal FIR in 2012 on the basis of a a cheating complaint filed by former BCCI chief N Srinivasan with the Chennai police.
In a recent episode of Raj Shamani’s podcast ‘Figuring Out’, Modi, however, claimed that he left India in 2010, not because of legal troubles, but because of life-threatening pressure from underworld don Dawood Ibrahim.
Mallya, on the other hand, left the country on March 2, 2016, the very day the banks, to which he owed over Rs. 9,000 crore, moved the Debt Recovery Tribunal (DRT). He is accused of fraud and money laundering.