NEW DELHI: The government said it has been aware of absconding jeweller Nirav Modi ’s presence in the UK and is following his case with the same intensity as tycoon Vijay Mallya , having sought the diamantaire ’s extradition to India at the earliest.“If you think we aren’t pursuing this, you are wrong. Just like we followed Vijay Mallya’s case, we are following this with the same intensity. Whatever steps need to be taken by the government will be taken,” said ministry of external affairs spokesperson Raveesh Kumar.Kumar said, “We are aware that (Nirav Modi) is in the UK, otherwise we wouldn’t have requested for extradition... We made a request, based on information provided by the CBI and ED, in August last year. Despite what we see on television, the status remains the same.”The Enforcement Directorate , which has been investigating Modi, said on Saturday that its extradition request sent to authorities in UK and two other countries, US and Egypt, has been pending since June last year. The UK home office has confirmed the request has been certified by the home secretary and is now under consideration of the Westminster magistrate court.Modi was tracked by a journalist working for UK daily, The Telegraph, in London. The daily claimed on Saturday that the fugitive Indian businessman is staying in a plush London apartment and running his diamond trade with unrestricted access to banking facilities in UK.Modi and his close associate Mehul Choksi, currently holed up in Antigua, are accused of money laundering worth over Rs 13,500 crore involving fraudulent issuance of Letters of Undertaking from Punjab National Bank for his entities engaged in diamond and jewellery exports.ED has issued 18 letters rogatory (LRs) to Armenia, Belgium, China, France, Japan, Malaysia, Russia, South Africa, UAE, UK, US, Hong Kong, Singapore and Switzerland seeking transaction details of his entities. ED is also probing his close associates Mihir Bhansali and Subhash Parab.After his fleeing India last year, a Mumbai court issued a non-bailable arrest warrant against Modi and later a Red Corner Notice (RCN) was issued. The RCN was also issued against Modi’s brother Nishal Modi, sister Purvi, associate Aditya Nanavati, Bhansali and Parab.The ED registered a money laundering case against him and his associates on February 14, 2018 and subsequently conducted searches at 75 premises. He was also summoned repeatedly for questioning.“Nirav Modi was summoned thrice to appear before the investigating authorities. On the request of ED, his passport was revoked by the Ministry of external affairs,” the agency said. Later, it filed an application before a special court in Mumbai to declare him fugitive under the new Fugitive Economic Offenders Act that would help in confiscating his assets.The ED has already attached assets worth over Rs 1,900 crore belonging to Modi and his associated entities, including Rs 960 crore of assets abroad in Switzerland, US, Dubai, Singapore and Hong Kong.While a chargesheet was filed last year, the supplementary chargesheet filed by the agency on February 28 this year gave details of its money trail of $ 927 million abroad.Questioned about whether the government will speed up the procedure for Nirav Modi’s extradition, Kumar said, “Just because he has been spotted doesn’t mean he will be brought back immediately. It is for the UK to consider our request and respond.”