Mumbai: In a significant breakthrough for Indian investigative agencies, absconding diamond jeweller Mehul Choksi has been detained in Belgium following an extradition request linked to his alleged involvement in the ₹13,000 crore Punjab National Bank (PNB) loan fraud case, official sources confirmed on Monday.
The action against the 65-year-old fugitive was carried out on Saturday, marking a crucial development in the years-long hunt for the businessman who fled India in 2018. Choksi, along with his nephew Nirav Modi, their relatives, employees, and certain bank officials, had been booked by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for orchestrating one of India’s biggest financial scams at PNB’s Brady House branch in Mumbai.
According to the ED, Choksi and his firm Gitanjali Gems, in connivance with certain bank officials, fraudulently obtained Letters of Undertaking (LoUs) and Foreign Letters of Credit (FLCs) by bypassing due procedures. These instruments were allegedly used to secure credit from overseas branches of Indian banks, leading to massive financial losses for PNB.
The Enforcement Directorate has so far filed three charge sheets against Choksi, while the CBI has also submitted multiple charge sheets detailing the alleged conspiracy and fraudulent transactions.
Choksi had been residing in Antigua and Barbuda since acquiring citizenship there in 2017 under its Citizenship by Investment Program. His attempt to evade Indian authorities hit a brief snag in 2021 when he was detained in Dominica under controversial circumstances, claiming he had been abducted. However, he managed to avoid extradition then, citing health issues and legal loopholes.
