Mumbai. Mehul Choksi, a diamond trader and the main accused in the alleged multi-billion rupee PNB scam, told a special court here that he is not able to return to India due to various reasons and it is beyond his control. He said that on this basis he cannot be declared a ‘fugitive economic offender’. Choksi has claimed that he did not leave India to avoid criminal trial nor is he refusing to return to the country. He said that his passport has been suspended by the Indian authorities.
The diamond merchant made these claims in an application filed before the special PMLA court on Wednesday. In this, he has requested for a direction to summon documents related to the suspension of his passport and the investigation being conducted by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) against him. The petition filed through advocate Vijay Aggarwal said that the current proceedings against Choksi are related to the ED’s petition to declare him a fugitive economic offender (FEO) and the relevant documents need to be summoned “for a fair decision in the case”.
The petition said that as per the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act, 2018, a “fugitive economic offender” is a person against whom a warrant for arrest has been issued by a court in India for a scheduled offence and who has left India to avoid criminal prosecution or is not returning to the country to avoid facing criminal prosecution.
The petition said that the ED’s application shows that neither of the two conditions has been fulfilled to declare Choksi a fugitive economic offender. Choksi claimed that in February 2018, he had replied to the ED’s summons issued against him to appear before the investigating agency and said, “He is unable to return to India as his passport has been suspended by the Indian authorities.”
The accused has also attached a notice issued to him by the passport office in his petition, which states the reason for suspension of his passport as “security threat to India”. The application states that under such circumstances, the ED’s stance that Choksi is not returning to India is wrong because when his passport has been suspended, he cannot be expected to return.
Therefore, for the decision of the present case (plea to declare him a fugitive economic offender), it is necessary that the reasons and documents showing the suspension of Choksi’s passport be brought on record, the plea said.
The court hearing the cases registered under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) sought a reply from the ED on Choksi’s plea and adjourned the hearing of the case till June 3. Choksi and his nephew Nirav Modi are wanted by the ED and the CBI for allegedly defrauding Punjab National Bank (PNB) of Rs 13,400 crore in connivance with some bank employees.
Tags: Mehul Choksi
FIRST PUBLISHED : May 23, 2024, 23:55 IST