A Gujarat court on Thursday declared fugitive diamantaire Nirav Modi as a "proclaimed absconder" in a customs duty evasion case filed in March and ordered him to appear in person on November 15.

In a public notification issued earlier in the day in newspapers, and also sent to government and police departments, Nirav Modi was declared proclaimed absconder under Section 82 of the Criminal Procedure Code, which could make it difficult for him to secure an anticipatory bail.