Epstein files: India rejects reference to PM Modi

India on Saturday (January 31) strongly rejected a reference to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the investigative files related to Jeffrey Epstein, describing it as "little more than trashy ruminations by a convicted criminal" that deserves to be dismissed with the "utmost contempt".

US authorities released the latest files relating to the convicted sex trafficker.

"We have seen reports of an email message from the so-called Epstein files that has a reference to the prime minister and his visit to Israel," External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in a statement.

"Beyond the fact of the prime minister's official visit to Israel in July 2017, the rest of the allusions in the email are little more than trashy ruminations by a convicted criminal, which deserve to be dismissed with the utmost contempt," he said.

The email is among investigative files released by the US Justice Department on Friday. The department released 3.5 million pages and 2,000 videos in line with an American law that was passed by the US Congress.

Powerful men who appear in files

From tech titans to Wall Street power brokers and foreign dignitaries, a who's who of powerful men make appearances in the huge trove of documents released on Friday (January 30) by the US Justice Department in connection with its investigations of Jeffrey Epstein.

Many have denied having close ties to the late financier, or at least having anything to do with his alleged sexual abuse of girls and young women that led to his arrest on sex trafficking charges.

Also Read: An email, an afterparty, and the Epstein files: Mira Nair’s name surfaces

No one has been charged with a crime connected to the investigation. Epstein killed himself in a Manhattan jail cell in 2019. Yet some of them maintained friendships with Epstein, or developed them anew, even after he became known as a predator of young girls and a registered sex offender.

Prince Andrew lost his royal titles

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, the man formerly known as Britain's Prince Andrew, has long been dogged by questions about his relationship with Epstein, including allegations from the late Virginia Roberts Giuffre that she was trafficked by Epstein and instructed to have sex with Mountbatten-Windsor when she was 17.

The former prince has repeatedly denied that it happened, but his brother, King Charles III, still stripped him of his royal titles late last year, including the right to be called a prince and the Duke of York.

Mountbatten-Windsor's name appears at least several hundred times in Friday's document release, including in Epstein's private emails.

Never went to his island: Elon Musk

Elon Musk, the billionaire Tesla founder, turns up at least a few times in Friday's document release, notably in email exchanges in 2012 and 2013 in which he discussed visiting Epstein's infamous Caribbean island compound. But it's not immediately clear if the island visits took place.

Also Read: Donald Trump, Elon Musk and Prince Andrew appear in new Epstein files

Musk has maintained that he repeatedly turned down the disgraced financier's overtures.

“Epstein tried to get me to go to his island and I REFUSED,” he posted on X in 2025.

Limited to business settings: Richard Branson

Richard Branson, the billionaire-founder of the Virgin Group, a global conglomerate, exchanged numerous emails with Epstein in the years after he pleaded guilty to soliciting sex from a minor and agreed to register as a sex offender in Florida in 2008.

In a 2013 exchange, Branson invited Epstein to his own private Caribbean island, which regularly hosts large conferences, charity events, and business meetings.

The company stressed in a statement on Saturday that there was no wrongdoing on Branson's part and that any dealings with Epstein were “limited to group or business settings” more than a decade ago. Branson also declined a charitable donation and decided not to meet or speak with him again after his team “uncovered serious allegations”, the company said.

Ehud Barak, former Israeli PM, was in regular contact

Ehud Barak, the former Israeli prime minister, and his wife turn up frequently in the documents released on Friday, showing they stayed in regular contact with Epstein for years, including well after his 2008 guilty plea for sex crimes in Florida.

Among the correspondence are plans for a 2017 stay at Epstein's New York residence. Other missives discuss mundane logistics for other visits, meetings and phone calls with Epstein.

Also Read: US Justice Department releases partial Epstein files

Barak has acknowledged regularly visiting Epstein on his trips to New York and flying on his private plane, but maintains he never observed any inappropriate behaviour or parties.

Barak served as Israel's prime minister from 1999 to 2001 and later served as its defence minister.

Cut ties with Epstein: Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick

Howard Lutnick, President Donald Trump's commerce secretary, visited Epstein's private Caribbean island with his family on at least one occasion, records released on Friday show. That appears to contradict prior statements he's made claiming he cut ties with the disgraced financier, who he's called “gross”, decades ago.

But emails show Lutnick and his wife accepted an invitation to Little St James in the US Virgin Islands in December 2012 and planned to arrive by yacht with their children.

Also Read: Photos of Bill Clinton included in newly released Epstein files

The former chairman of Newmark, a major commercial real estate firm, also had drinks on another occasion in 2011 with Epstein and corresponded with him about the construction of a building across the street from both of their homes.

The Commerce Department, in a statement, said Lutnick had “limited interactions with Mr Epstein in the presence of his wife and has never been accused of wrongdoing”.

(With agency inputs)