Fugitive diamond merchant Nirav Modi’s sister and brother-in-law have been allowed to turn approver or a prosecution witness by a special court in the Punjab National Bank (PNB) scam case.

The special judge for cases under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), V. C. Barde, accepted the pleas of Purvi Modi and Mayank Mehta to turn an approver on Monday.

The “position of the accused (Purvi Modi) in this case after tender of pardon is that she shall be marked as approver”, the court said.

Purvi, a Belgian national, is an accused in the case registered by the Enforcement Directorate. “The accused staying abroad at present shall be directed to present herself before the court, for which purpose the prosecution shall take necessary steps,” the court order said.

A PTI report said that in her application for pardon, Purvi Modi said she was not a prime accused and has been attributed only a limited role by the investigating agency. She has so far fully co-operated with the ED by providing all the requisite information and documents, she added.

On account of being Nirav Modi’s sister, she was in a unique position to provide “substantial and important evidence, information, proof, and documents and access to bank accounts, assets, companies and entities that are relevant to Nirav Modi and his actions/dealings”, the plea said.

Nirav Modi has been lodged at Wandsworth Prison in south-west London since March 2019 following India’s extradition request.