Dominica court has granted interim bail to fugitive diamond trader Mehul Choksi, accused of multi-crore Punjab National Bank (PNB) scam. Keeping in mind Choksi's ill health, the court has given permission to go to Antigua-Barbuda for treatment. However, after recovering, Choksi will have to come to Dominica to attend court hearings.
Earlier, Choksi was arrested on May 25 for illegal entry into Dominica. He has challenged his custody in the High Court. Choksi claims that he was kidnapped from Antigua-Barbuda and brought to Dominica.
However, the public prosecutor opposed Choksi's claim, saying that he had illegally entered Dominica and was taken into custody for this reason.
Mehul Choksi had been living there since 2018 with Antigua citizenship, but suddenly went missing on 23 May. Two days later, he was caught in Dominica. In the midst of this whole matter, a letter from Antigua Prime Minister Gaston Brown has also come to the fore, in which it has been said that Mehul had hidden information related to citizenship.
In a letter dated 14 October 2019, Brown said, "I propose to pass an order pursuant to Section 8 of the Antigua and Barbuda Citizenship Act, Cap 22, to deprive you of the citizenship of Antigua and Barbuda on the ground of willful suppression of facts." To be.'
Choksi, an accused in the Rs 14,500 crore PNB scam, had fled abroad in January 2018. It was later revealed that he had taken Antigua-Barbuda citizenship in 2017 itself. Agencies like the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) probing the PNB scam are trying to extradite Choksi.
Mehul Choksi has refused to appear in India citing ill health. Sometimes he is produced only through video conferencing. Many of his properties in India have also been confiscated.
Choksi's nephew Nirav Modi, the main accused in this scam, is in London jail. The court and the government there have also approved his extradition, but Nirav has challenged the extradition decision in the High Court of London. It may take 10 to 12 months for the High Court's decision in this case to come.
