Fugitive diamond businessman Mehul Choksi has been arrested by law enforcement officials in Belgium. Choksi, which is wanted in India in the billions of dollars of Punjab National Bank (PNB) fraud case, has been escaping from the authorities since 2018.
Here the details of the incidents are given due to which Choksi was arrested. Actually, Mehul Choksi ran away from India in 2018, first he went to America and then settled in Antigua. A year ago, in 2017, he gained citizenship of Antigua.
Choksi’s nephew Nirav Modi was arrested by the Metropolitan Police in London in May 2019. Although he has abolished all the legal routes of extradition, he is still arrested in the United Kingdom.
In March 2023, Interpol canceled the red notice against Mehul Choksi. In 2024, Choksi and his wife allegedly moved from Antigua to Belgium.
Antiguan media reports have shown that Mehul and Preity Choksi are considering settling in Geneva. Earlier this year, Choksi’s legal lawyer told a special court in Mumbai that he was currently in Antwerp, Belgium, where he is undergoing treatment for blood cancer.
Two weeks ago, Mehul Choksi and his wife Preeti obtained an F-residency card in Belgium. Belgian citizen Preeti has family relations in the country, as well as an extended family of Choksi.
Meanwhile, according to sources, Choksi was arrested in Belgium on Saturday after local authorities confirmed his presence in the country. Sources further said that preparations are being made for his extradition.
However, Choksi is currently preparing for a legal battle. His rescue team is planning to file a petition for bail, claiming that he would oppose his extradition.
The legal team says that Choksi has strong reasons for challenging extradition request, cited his health status among other arguments.
Choksi allegedly resulted in connivance with his colleagues and bank officials of Punjab National Bank (PNB) during the period 2014 to 2017 and released PNB’s letter of undertaking and foreign letter of credits, resulting in a wrong loss of Rs 6097.63 crore to PNB. He had also taken a loan from ICICI Bank and also defaulted that loan.
During the investigation, ED searched more than 136 places across India and seized valuables/jewelery worth Rs 50 lakh. A case of Rs 597.75 crore related to the Gitanjali group of Mehul Choksi.
In addition, the 1968.15 crore immovable/movable properties of Mehul Choksi/Gitanjali Group were seized, including immovable assets, vehicles, bank accounts, factory, shares of listed companies and jewelery etc. in India and abroad. In total, assets worth Rs 2565.90 crore were confiscated or seized and three prosecution complaints were filed in the case.
