LONDON -- Diamond tycoon Nirav Modi has lost his bid to avoid extradition from Britain to India to face allegations he was involved in a US$1.8 billion bank fraud.

District Judge Samuel Goozee ruled in London on Thursday that the jeweler has a case to answer before the Indian courts. Modi, whose jewels once adorned stars from Bollywood to Hollywood, has been held without bail in London. He has 14 days to appeal the judge's decision.

Goozee dismissed Modi's argument that he would not be treated fairly in India.

Modi has refused to submit to extradition to India and denies the fraud allegations. He sought political asylum in the U.K.

Indian authorities have sought Modi's arrest since February 2018, when they alleged companies he controlled defrauded the state-owned Punjab National Bank by using fake financial documents to get loans to buy and import jewels.

The extradition matter now goes to the U.K. Home Office.