Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said that the Union government is using all channels to bring back fugitive economic offenders who have escaped to another country to evade arrest.

He was speaking at a symposium on ‘Build Synergy for Seamless Credit Flow and Economic Growth’.

“In our attempt to bring back fugitive [economic offenders], we relied on policies and law and also used diplomatic channels,” he said. “The message is very clear – return to your country. We are continuing these efforts.”

Modi said that more than Rs 5 lakh crore had been recovered from the offenders by the government. He claimed that a lot of money was stuck with the defaulters during the Congress-led government’s term.

“When someone runs away with bank loans, it is discussed a lot,” he said. “But when a daring government brings them back, nobody discusses it.”

However, Modi did not name any of the defaulters who he urged to return to the country.

The Indian government has been making efforts to extradite economic offenders such as Vijay Mallya and Nirav Modi.

Nirav Modi is accused of duping the Punjab National Bank of more than Rs 13,000 crore, and Mallya owes money to a consortium of banks led by the State Bank of India in a fraud case involving the now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines.