Wanted diamond tycoon Mehul Choksi detained in Belgium in ₹13,000 crore PNB scam case

Belgium detained wanted diamond merchant Mehul Choksi on April 12, following India’s request for his extradition.

Choksi is under investigation by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in connection with the suspected ₹13,000 crore Punjab National Bank (PNB) loan fraud case.

After receiving a residency card, Choksi had been residing in Antwerp, Belgium. Earlier this year, the CBI formally requested Belgian authorities—via the Ministry of External Affairs—to initiate extradition proceedings.

Before moving to Belgium, Choksi was believed to be living in Antigua and Barbuda. His wife, Preeti, is reportedly a Belgian citizen.

“After he was detained last Saturday, a team of three to four senior CBI officials has been asked to travel to Belgium to complete all procedural and documentation work,” a source said.

Choksi is now preparing for a legal battle, as his defense team readies a bail application and plans to oppose the extradition request. His lawyers argue that his medical condition is a legitimate reason to deny extradition.

He is currently being prosecuted under the Fugitive Economic Offenders (FEO) Act, which empowers the Indian government to seize the assets of individuals accused of economic offenses even before a trial begins.

The ED informed a special court in Mumbai last year that Choksi had orchestrated his escape from India well in advance.

He acquired Antiguan citizenship in November 2017—two months before the PNB filed a formal complaint.

The ED also said that Choksi left India under suspicious circumstances on January 2, 2018, just days before the case was officially registered.

According to the agency, he is the primary accused in the PNB scam.

Choksi, however, has denied the ED’s claims through his legal team, arguing that the agency has failed to provide concrete evidence supporting its accusations.

Reacting to the news of Choksi’s arrest, PNB scam whistle-blower Hariprasad SV said, “It’s really great news. We are very glad for all those people who were cheated by Mehul Choksi in India. It’s unbelievable how he got caught in Belgium. It’s also important that we bring him back to India and recover the money he looted. That’s what India needs.”

“Extradition will not be an easy task. His wallet is full, and he will hire the best lawyers in Europe, just like Vijay Mallya. It’s not easy for India to bring him back,” he added.

“Even in Antigua, he managed to get away thanks to a fleet of lawyers. It won’t be easy for the Indian government, but I hope they succeed this time,” he continued.

In 2018, both the ED and CBI charged Choksi, his nephew—fugitive diamond trader Nirav Modi—as well as their relatives, employees, and certain bank officials, in connection with the massive fraud at the PNB Brady House branch in Mumbai.

Choksi, his firm Gitanjali Gems, and others allegedly defrauded PNB through fraudulent issuance of Letters of Undertaking (LoUs) and unauthorized enhancement of Foreign Letters of Credit (FLCs), in collusion with bank insiders. The ED has so far filed three chargesheets naming Choksi as a central figure.

In 2021, Choksi was arrested in Dominica under controversial circumstances. While authorities claimed he was attempting to flee to Cuba, his legal team alleged he had been kidnapped from Antigua.

Although India had sought his extradition at the time, Dominica deported him back to Antigua.

Choksi later traveled to Belgium, reportedly for cancer treatment, where he has now been detained.

Meanwhile, Nirav Modi—also declared a fugitive economic offender—is currently in a London prison, contesting India’s extradition request filed in January 2019.

Hariprasad, a Bengaluru-based entrepreneur and whistleblower, filed a police complaint in 2015 after allegedly being cheated of nearly ₹10 crore by Mehul Choksi’s Gitanjali Group.

Suspecting a larger scam, he flagged discrepancies in the company’s balance sheets and, in 2016, wrote to several federal agencies—including the ED, CBI, SEBI, Ministry of Corporate Affairs, and the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).

He alleged that 31 banks had extended loans amounting to ₹9,872 crore to the Gitanjali Group, despite it holding restricted assets of just ₹25–30 crore.