The fugitive Indian businessman Mehul Choksi was arrested by Belgium’s law enforcement and acted on April 14, 2025 at the request of the Central Bureau of Investigation. Image source: ANI
Indian agencies have been following Mehul Choksi and initially contacted Belgian authorities for his extradition between August 2024 and October 2024.
In July 2024, a message was received from the Brussels National Central Bureau saying that Mr Choksi was receiving medical treatment in Belgium. In this information, several copies of information related to him were shared with his NCB, Brussels (subsequently). Thereafter, consultations were conducted with CBI officials and CBI officials and officials from the Department of External Affairs and requested on October 25, the Belg of October 25, 2024, a model of proposals for the company, and the visitor of the company was delivered on October 25, 2024. Belgium,” said a senior official.
Inquiry related to the “planner” of the National Bank of Punjab scam case, the Enforcement Bureau (ED) has attached assets worth Rs 2.56 crore so far.
Property attached through nine separate orders includes real estate assets of Rs 105 – apartments, office units, land plots, commercial buildings, commercial buildings and factory units in Mumbai, Regde, Nashik and Nagpur, Maharashtra, West Bangladesh, Spain, Spain, villages, small villages, country cottages, Telangana. Jewelry, diamonds and precious metals are worth about Rs 23 billion. The UAE, the United States, Thailand and Japan have attached properties worth nearly 85 crore, while the movable properties worth 598 crore have been seized after a search operation at 136 locations in India.
As part of the plan to recover and restore the assets, ED facilitated the handover of property worth approximately Rs 150 crore to liquidators of Mr Choksi’s company Gitanjali Gems Limited. The remaining assets handed over to the bank according to a court order of September 10, 2024. In February this year, the court also allowed the transfer of non-property property to liquidators to monetize.
In this case, 15 letters (request letters) have been sent to Hong Kong, Singapore, Thailand, the United States, Belgium, China, Italy, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United Arab Emirates to obtain detailed information on the company, assets, bank accounts, the basis for execution of temporary assets, and other information related to Mr. Choksi and his company. As a result, assets worth approximately Rs 85 crore are already attached in Thailand, the United States, Japan and the UAE.
Between 2014 and 2017, Mr Choksi allegedly purchased corporate and foreign letters of credit through companies owned by his beneficiaries, Gitanjali Gems Limited, Gili India and Nakshatra Brands, worth approximately US$952.7 million (about US$952.7 million) (about US$6,097.63 Crore), from Nertjab National Bank, Mumbiai, Mumbiai.
ED summoned Mr Choksi’s three personal appearances, but he did not join the investigation. On August 8, 2018, an open non-bail order was issued against him. His passport was also revoked as requested by the agency. On June 28, 2018, April 7, 2020 and March 14, 2022, one major and two additional complaints were filed against him, with another 13 cases targeting him and 13.
Additionally, the emergency room filed an application dated July 10, 2018, requesting that he be declared a fugitive and confiscate his property, followed by the attached/occupied property worth Rs 23.45 crore.
publishing – April 14, 2025 at 10:46 pm IST
