New Delhi: Interpol has issued a red-corner notice against Nirav Modi, the fugitive diamantaire accused of defrauding Punajb National Bank out of over Rs 13,000 crore.

The Interpol notice is a "request" to 192 member countries "to locate and provisionally arrest an individual pending extradition". The global agency's website adds: "Interpol cannot compel any member country to arrest an individual who is the subject of a red notice.... Each member country decides for itself what legal value to give a red notice within their borders."

Nirav had fled India in the first week of January with his wife, brother and uncle and was last seen in public on January 23 in Davos, posing with the Prime Minister and businesspersons.

An official said Interpol had issued the red notice against Nirav, his brother Nishal Modi and his employee Parab Subhash Shankar on June 29 and informed Indian agencies on Monday.

The absence of such a notice had helped Nirav travel around the world at will even though his Indian passport was revoked in February.

The CBI had approached Interpol on June 12, seeking the red notice against Nirav and his family. CBI sources had later accused the UK branch of Interpol of not informing India of Nirav's frequent travels between Britain and several other countries using a revoked Indian passport.

Sources in the CBI, the nodal agency for Interpol in India, said the global agency had asked for a copy of the chargesheet, filed early in June.

Last month, Indian security agencies were left red-faced following reports that Nirav had travelled between the US and the UK and to Hong Kong on his revoked passport between March 15 and March 31.

Nirav is reportedly trying to seek asylum in Britain, citing "personal persecution." He is said to be hiding in Belgium after he was last seen moving from London to Brussels on June 12.

The discovery that Nirav continued to travel with his revoked passport had led to a war of words between two government wings - the ministries of home and foreign affairs - as both sought to blame each other.