Free At Last Playboy Modi Parties Hard, Cocks a Snook at Delhi

NEW DELHI: Lalit Modi, playboy, entrepreneur, ‘scamster’, cricketer ---in all his avatars there is one common thread. The man likes to party. His Instagram reflects his movements, and perhaps even his moods. A dull period of just illustrations, cartoons and articles was transformed last year when the British travel document came into his hands, courtesy Minister of External Affairs Sushma Swaraj and UK Labour MP Keith Vaz amongst others.

And from then on it has been a spate of partying. Like a man starved, Modi rushed off to Ibiza with family. His wife, who was supposed to have had a cancer surgery during the same days in Portugal was also by his side. The Citizen could not find a single mention of the treatment at the research institute in Portugal in an unusually detailed Instagram, with Lisbon and the dates somehow merging into Ibiza. He has said though that the surgery was serious and swift, and his wife was partying with him in Ibiza just three days later!

So there was Modi in private jets, in first class, flying across the world and partying hard, like a man out of prison. Paris Hilton, Naomi Campbell, family, friends, and for those who think he is a ‘fugitive’ from the law---hey presto. There is Modi with a former Secretary-General of Interpol, arm in arm, the best of buddies.

And even as The Citizen was selecting photographs Lalit Modi was posting more, mostly snapshots of Indian television screens. The cover photograph of this article reflects Modi’s obsession with the Indian media posted as we write.

Here goes:

In August last year, Lalit Modi’s travel document -- which was given to him on “humanitarian grounds” as his wife was scheduled to undergo cancer surgery in Portugal -- unleashed a new wave of partying.

In the same week, the family was in Ibiza.

Soon enough, Modi was making light of the IPL controversy

Modi was then off to Dubai to make contact with his Bollywood friends.

And next he hangs with Ronald Noble, who, according to Wikipedia is “an American law enforcement officer and a former Secretary-General of Interpol.”