Mehul Choksi Tried to Flee to Switzerland, But India Foiled His Escape: Report

Fugitive diamond merchant Mehul Choksi, who is also accused in the huge ₹13,500 crore Punjab National Bank (PNB) loan fraud case, has been detained by police in Belgium, a big relief for India’s long effort to extradite him. Choksi was detained during the weekend in Antwerp after Belgian police stopped him at Brussels Airport, apparently just before he could board a flight to Switzerland in the name of getting cancer treatment.

The arrest closes a dramatic chapter in a seven-year global manhunt that had seen surreptitious operations by Indian agencies such as the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED).

Mehul Choksi Attempted to Escape with Belgian Residence

Choksi, ex-CEO of Gitanjali Group and prime suspect in one of India’s largest financial frauds, had escaped from India in 2018 along with his nephew Nirav Modi, wife Ami Modi, and brother Neeshal Modi. He then acquired Antiguan citizenship via its investment program, making India’s extradition difficult.

Indian officials tracked Choksi’s movements across multiple countries and discovered that he had recently obtained an F-category residency card from Belgium using allegedly forged documents. According to sources cited by India Today, his wife Preeti Choksi, a Belgian national, helped him gain the residency by falsely citing humanitarian and medical grounds.

Choksi hid his dual nationality status, as he was still Indian and Antiguan, which is against Belgian residency regulations. Indian authorities also discovered that he had applied for an F+ residency card, which would have made extradition much more difficult.

Arrest Based on Indian Warrants

Moving with lightning speed, the Belgian authorities suspended the F+ residency application and arrested Mehul Choksi on the strength of two non-bailable arrest warrants given by a Mumbai court in 2018 and 2021. He is now incarcerated in a Belgian prison, and a bail hearing will take place in the next week.

Choksi’s attorney, Vijay Aggarwal, has verified the arrest and stated, “We will begin the process of filing an appeal against this, and then. we will be asking him to be removed from prison,” listing his ill health and requirement of cancer treatment as the reasons.

Not First International Tussle of Mehul Choksi

It is not the first time Choksi has been arrested outside India. In 2021, he was arrested for unlawful entry by Dominican authorities, and it led to a string of legal cases. Even after a CBI team was sent for his extradition, his lawyers persuaded the court to let him go back to Antigua for treatment. The British Queen’s Privy Council subsequently decided in his favour after he had spent 51 days in prison.

In spite of continuous setbacks, Indian agencies did not give up. When they heard about his being in Belgium, the CBI and ED forwarded a detailed dossier to local authorities, describing his involvement in the PNB scam and his consistent efforts to dodge justice.

Extradition Proceedings Begin

With the arrest, India is acting swiftly to initiate formal extradition proceedings in Belgium. Choksi had previously proposed cooperation through video conferencing on grounds of his health, but Indian authorities turned down the offer.

With Belgian authorities now on board, India may at last be one step nearer to bringing Mehul Choksi back to stand trial and retrieve the funds involved in one of the nation’s most infamous banking scams.