 "Fugitive businessman Mehul Choksi is reportedly in Belgium. File Photo/News18")
Businessman Mehul Choksi, who is wanted in India for a bank loan fraud case, is reportedly living in a European country. As per reports, he has been residing in Belgium with his wife, Preeti Choksi.
Choksi, who was previously in Antigua and Barbuda, left the Caribbean country for medical treatment, as per reports. India has been seeking his extradition after he, along with his nephew, jeweller Nirav Modi, fled India in January 2018 before the Punjab National Bank loan fraud case came to the limelight.
Let’s take a closer look.
Mehul Choksi in Belgium?
Mehul Choksi is in Belgium’s port city of Antwerp, as per a report by the Associated Times. He has been living in Belgium after securing an ‘F Residency Card’, which provides the right to live in the country to family members of a citizen of the European Union (EU).
The fugitive businessman’s wife, Preeti Choksi, is a citizen of Belgium.
The report also mentioned that Indian authorities have approached Belgium to initiate Choksi’s extradition. India is yet to officially comment on the development.
Choksi obtained the residence card by allegedly providing “false declarations” and “forged documents” to Belgian authorities. He also failed to disclose his existing citizenship in India and Antigua, Associated Times reported citing sources.
Belgium has confirmed Choksi ’s presence in the European country. David Jordens, spokesperson of the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told CNN-News18, “I can confirm that the Federal Public Service (FPS) Foreign Affairs is aware of this case and attaches great importance and attention to it. However, we do not comment on individual cases. Furthermore, this case falls under the competence of the Federal Public Service Justice. The FPS Foreign Affairs continues to closely follow the developments in this important case.”
Choksi returned to the spotlight after Antigua and Barbuda’s Minister of Foreign Affairs EP Chet Green, who was recently in India for Raisina Dialogue, revealed that the fugitive businessman has left the island nation for medical treatment. He also said his country is working with the Indian government on the issue.
“Mehul Choksi is not on the island, I am told he left Antigua for medical attention abroad. He remains a citizen of Antigua and Barbuda. Your Government and my Government are working together on this matter. We have some traditions in democracy. We both respect the rule of law. [The] Matter of Mehul Choksi has been subjected to legal review. Until such time it is reviewed and determined, there is nothing I can say, or any of us can say or do,” Greene told the news agency ANI.
Choksi is an accused in India’s biggest-ever banking fraud case. He and his nephew Nirav Modi allegedly siphoned off Rs 13,500 crore of public money from the state-run Punjab National Bank (PNB) using fraudulent letters of undertaking .
Modi is currently in a London jail, with India seeking his extradition from the UK.
Can India extradite Mehul Choksi from Belgium?
It is possible.
India has an extradition treaty with Belgium. The decades-old pact allows for the extradition of fugitive criminals wanted for offences such as murder; manslaughter; bigamy; forgery and counterfeiting; embezzlement, fraud, and so on.
“In no case can the surrender be made unless the crime shall be punishable according to the laws in force in both countries with regard to extradition. In no case, nor on any consideration whatever, shall the High Contracting Parties be bound to surrender their own subjects, whether by birth or naturalization,” the treaty reads.
It also allows for the rejection of extradition requests if the offence involved is political in nature.
In 2023, India and Belgium signed Mutual Legal Assistance Treaties (MLATs) in criminal matters, which require both nations to put into effect each other’s search warrants and summons against fugitives wanted by their investigating agencies.
“…Arrangements have been made by the Central government with the government of the Kingdom of Belgium for service or execution of summons or search warrant in relation to criminal matters, on any person in Kingdom of Belgium,” the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said at the time.
In 2020, the Union Cabinet gave a nod to the signing and ratification of the extradition treaty between India and Belgium that allows the two countries to repatriate those accused of or convicted of an extraditable offence.
An extraditable offence refers to a crime punishable under the laws of both countries with imprisonment of one year or more.
However, Choksi’s extradition could become complicated as reports claim he plans to move to Switzerland for medical treatment at a renowned cancer hospital.
With inputs from agencies