Choksi had filed a case in the high court of Dominica, seeking to quash the proceedings against him alleging that his arrest was “dictated” by representatives of the Indian government….reports Asian Lite News
In a relief to fugitive Indian businessman Mehul Choksi, who is wanted in India in the Rs 13,500 crore Punjab National Bank (PNB) fraud case, the Dominica High Court on Monday granted him bail on medical grounds.
Choksi’s lawyer Vijay Agarwal said, “Yes, Choksi has been granted bail on medical grounds.”
“Dominica’s courts finally upheld the rule of law and rights of a human to be treated in the medical facilities of his choice. And all attempts by various agencies did not bear fruits. There is a solace in saying that all clever foxes end up as fur coats,” he said.
Choksi had gone missing on May 23 from Antigua and Barbuda, sparking a massive manhunt. He was later captured in Dominica and is facing charges of entering the country illegally.
Choksi had filed a case in the high court of Dominica, seeking to quash the proceedings against him alleging that his arrest was “dictated” by representatives of the Indian government.
The case was filed against the Immigration Minister of the Caribbean nation, its police chief and the investigating officer of the case.
Choksi pleaded that the decision to charge him for illegal entry violated the law and, accordingly, was null and void.
He has been kept at the Dominica China Friendship Hospital while awaiting an outcome in his illegal entry case.
Choksi’s lawyer has alleged that their client was kidnapped and forcibly taken to Dominica.
He is wanted in India by the Central Bureau of Investigation and the Enforcement Directorate.
Govt says efforts are on to extradite fugitive businessman Mehul Choksi, diamantaire Nirav Modi and Vinay Mishra from Britain, reports Asian Lite News
Reiterating that it will continue to make all efforts to bring back fugitives to face justice in India, the Ministry of External Affairs said that Britain has assured New Delhi that it will do its best to have rogue businessman Nirav Modi extradited at the earliest.
In response to a set of questions on extradition of fugitive businessman Mehul Choksi, diamantaire Nirav Modi and Vinay Mishra from West Bengal charged of cow smuggling, MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi stated that the ministry will continue to make all efforts to bring fugitives to face justice in India.
“As for Nirav Modi, you are aware that on April 15 this year UK Secretary of State had ordered his extradition to India. We understand Nirav Modi is seeking to appeal against this decision. He continues to remain in custody of UK authorities,” the MEA Spokesperson stated.
UK Home Secretary Priti Patel
Adding that the issue of extradition of economic offenders was discussed in the India-UK Virtual Summit held on 4 May, he informed that the UK side had run into legal hurdles because of the criminal justice system there and that UK will do whatever possible to make sure earliest possible extradition.
“The UK side conveyed that there are some legal hurdles because of the nature of criminal justice system in the UK but they are aware of the issue and they will do whatever possible to make sure that these people are extradited at the earliest,” the MEA spokesperson explained.
“As regards to the specific case of Mehul Choksi, we do not have any update this week, he remains in the custody of Dominican authorities and certain legal proceedings are underway,” he said in the weekly virtual briefing.
Informing that he has no information in the case of Vinay Mishra, Bagchi requested media persons to check with the Ministry of Home Affairs on the specific details of all 3 cases.
Choksi running short of options
Mehul Choksi, who is currently facing the charges of entering Dominica illegally, was “unlawfully renditioned” from Antigua and Barbuda to Dominica so that he would no longer have the option of appealing to the UK Privy Council, his lawyer contended.
Mehul Choksi
Michael Polak, part of the legal team representing Choksi and an expert in providing legal assistance to foreign nationals around the world, told a virtual news conference that the team has also filed a complaint with the War Crimes Unit of UK’s Metropolitan Police on the ground that Choksi was tortured.
Describing Choksi’s case as one of “egregious breach of the rule of law and fundamental fairness”, Polak said, “What has happened to Choksi has been terrible. He was lured into a property, kidnapped, a bag placed over his head, beaten, forced on to a boat and unlawfully renditioned into another country.”
“In Antigua, he has the right to appeal to the Privy Council in London to determine whether the government is acting properly…against him. In Dominica, he does not have such protection. The motive behind the kidnapping could not be clearer,” he said.
He further claimed that there was sufficient proof that Barbara Jarabica and the other men involved in the incident had carried out a “reconnaissance or a failed attempt to kidnap” Choksi in April 2021 and said that Choksi should be returned to Antigua.
Mehul Choksi in prison
Giving details of the abduction attempt, Polak said Jabarica, who lured Choksi to her AirBNB accommodation on May 23, had specifically asked the owner if there is a place for docking a small boat in the backyard.
Showing chats between Jabarica and owner of the properties, Polak said she had discussed taking two adjoining properties after getting confirmation about docking place for boats.
Polak alleged that one property was used by people with her, who were part of kidnapping team.
The lawyer also claimed that soon after the kidnapping of Choksi, Jabarica left Antigua and Barbuda in a private plane to Dominica at 7.26 pm as she felt safe from investigation.
Polak also contended that Choksi continues to be an Antiguan citizen and can appeal against any move to strip him of his citizenship or to extradite him to India in the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council.
He also said that the diamantaire would not have access to this legal protection in Dominica.
A complaint filed by Polak with the UK Metropolitan Police contended that Choksi’s case should be investigated by the War Crimes Unit as it involves “torture”.
“The War Crimes Unit of the Metropolitan Police investigates war crimes, torture and genocide wherever it takes place,” the lawyer said.
The Metropolitan Police and Crown Prosecution Service will have the final say in an investigation.
According to Polak’s complaint filed with the Metropolitan Police on June 7, Choksi was allegedly lured by Jarabica and then attacked and taken by force by several men to Dominica in a boat. The complaint has also pointed out that Jarabica and three men allegedly involved in the incident – St Kitts and Nevis national Gurdip Bath, Gurmit Singh and Gurjit Singh Bhandal – are all residents of the UK.
Choksi, who is wanted in India by the CBI and the ED in connection with the PNB fraud case, had gone missing on May 23 from Antigua…reports Asian Lite News
Antigua and Barbuda police have commenced an investigation into the possible abduction of Mehul Choksi from Antigua on May 23, 2021.
According to Antigua Ness Room, a news outlet in Carribean island, Prime Minister Gaston Browne has said that Choksi’s lawyers wrote to the police commissioner providing the names of the people he believes abducted him.
Browne said both the police and the government are taking the allegations seriously.
While speaking to a radio, Browne said that he has learnt that Choksi has filed a complaint with Antigua and Barbuda police that he was abducted and taken to Dominica.
“Choksi has filed a complaint with the Royal Police Force of Antigua and Barbuda to the extant that he was abducted. He made a formal claim through his attorneys that he was abducted from Antigua and taken to Dominica so it is a report that police is taking seriously and they are currently investigating the abduction,” Browne said.
A Dominican High Court will hear Choksi’s bail plea later in the day.
Meanwhile another report in the Associates Times found out fault in the theory of Dominica opposition leader Lennox Linton, who had reportedly claimed that Choksi was brought to Dominica in the Yacht Calliope of Arne around 10 p.m. on May 23.
Choksi, who is wanted in India by the CBI and the ED in connection with the PNB fraud case, had gone missing on May 23 from Antigua sparking a massive manhunt. He was captured in Dominica on May 26.
Choksi and his lawyers had claimed that he was forced on a vessel and was abducted.
On June 2, Choksi pleaded not guilty to illegal entry before the court and was denied bail.
He appeared before the magistrate on a wheelchair in a blue T-shirt and black trousers.
According to Dominica News Online, the magistrate’s court denied bail to Choksi after the government prosecutor argued that he was facing 11 offences in India and extradition proceedings in Antigua and could be a flight risk.
The 62-year-old left India in January 2018, days before the CBI registered a case.
On May 27, first pictures of Choksi emerged online, showing several signs of bruises on his arms and a swollen eye.
In a statement to Business Standard, Choksi, who is wanted in India in the Rs 13,500 crore Punjab and National Bank (PNB) loan fraud case, said that a friend of his in Antigua named Barbara Jabarika had invited him to her house…reports Asian Lite News.
Fugitive diamantaire Mehul Choksi, who went missing on May 23 from Antigua and Barbuda and was captured in Dominica few days later, has said that he was abducted by Indian agents and was given shock with a Taser gun whenever he resisted, according to a media report.
He also alleged that he was beaten up by the officials.
In a statement to Business Standard newspaper, Choksi said that he was abducted from the Carribean Island of Antigua on the night of May 23 from where he was forcibly taken on a boat to the island of Dominica.
In a statement to Business Standard, Choksi, who is wanted in India in the Rs 13,500 crore Punjab and National Bank (PNB) loan fraud case, said that a friend of his in Antigua named Barbara Jabarika had invited him to her house.
“So I went into the house… In three minutes there were about 8 to 10 people… and they said that we knew who you are and you have to go for investigation just now with us… they just grabbed me and I tried to fight against them, but it was very, very hard… they came at me from all sides, they tied my hands, my legs and everything,” Choksi, who has been staying in Antigua and Barbuda since 2018 after taking citizenship in 2017 under the Citizenship by Investment programme, said in the statement.
“Then they brought one wheelchair… they tried to make a story that even the police of Antigua were involved in this…half of them were India, very, very strong like army people… And they put me on the wheel chair and whenever I was fighhting, they would shock me with a taser… They tied me from behind, my legs and my body, my hands, everything. And they put a gag, very big plastic gag in my face,” he said.
“Then they got a mask and covered my head… And they put me in a boat, the whole entire wheelchair, then they put me on a big boat, a very big boat… then they took off the mask… There were two Indians. They said they were agents from India… The two gentlemen who were with me, they were Gurjit Singh and there was another name,” Business Standard quoted Choksi as saying.
“At the last hour in the boat, I got a call from an Indian authority. He said his name is Narendra Singh. He is on my case. And he said that when you are asked, when your interrogation happens in Dominica, say that this whole matter happened with your consent… They beat me, bruised me, used the Taser. And after coming to Dominica, it was an unbelievable experience. What I went through for the next few days. It was so non-cooperation and so bad experience that I can’t put in words (sic), ” he added.
Choksi had gone missing from Antigua on May 23, sparking a massive manhunt. He was captured in Dominica on May 26.
A Dominican court has restrained the extradition of Choksi till further orders by hearing the haebus corpus plea filed by his lawyers. The court is all set to further hear the matter later in the day.
On Thursday, first pictures of Choksi emerged online, showing several signs of bruises on his arms and a swollen eye.
Choksi is wanted in India by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with the Rs 13,500 crore Punjab National Bank (PNB) loan fraud case. He had shifted to Antigua in January 2018, days before the CBI registered a case.
His lawyer in India, Vijay Agarwal, had told IANS, “Choksi was forced to get into a vessel from Antigua and was taken to Dominica. He also claimed that there were marks on Choksi’s body, implying the use of force.”
“There is something fishy and I guess it was a strategy to take him to another place so that there are chances of sending him back to India. So I don’t know what forces are operating. The time will tell,” he had said.
However, Antigua Police Commissioner Atlee Rodney has rubbished the claims of Choksi’s counsel and said that they have no information on him being forcefully removed.
An eight-member team of Indian officials has also landed in Dominica on a private jet for the extradition of Choksi.
On Saturday, pictures of Choksi released by Antigua Newsroom showed him behind bars and with injuries on his hands and a swollen and bruised left eye…reports Asian Lite News
Fugitive diamantaire Mehul Choksi has been moved to the government quarantine facility in Dominica, according to sources on Sunday.
On Saturday, pictures of Choksi released by Antigua Newsroom showed him behind bars and with injuries on his hands and a swollen and bruised left eye.
These were the first public pictures of Choksi, who had reportedly gone missing on Sunday (May 23) evening. He was later apprehended by Dominica Police on Wednesday and had been in their custody since then.
On Friday, the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court allowed Choksi to be transported to a hospital for medical attention and for the administration of a COVID-19 test.
Efforts have been scaled up to bring back the fugitive businessman to India. ANI has learnt that multiple agencies are in touch with the government of Dominica on the issue which has been told that Choksi is originally an Indian citizen and had taken on new citizenship to escape the law in India after having committed a fraud of almost two billion US dollars.
It is reliably gathered that India through back-channel and diplomatic route has clearly told Dominica that Choksi should be treated as a fugitive Indian citizen who has an Interpol Red Corner notice against him and he should be handed over to Indian authorities for deportation and to face the law in India for his alleged deeds which have robbed the Indian public of billions of dollars.
A Dominican court has extended till June 2 its order restraining the extradition of Choksi from Dominica. The High Court will also hear the Indian fugitive’s habeas corpus plea on that date.
Choksi and his nephew Nirav Modi are wanted in India for allegedly siphoning off Rs 13,500 crore of public money from the state-run Punjab National Bank (PNB) using letters of undertaking. (ANI)
The Antigua Observer reported that Choksi is in the custody of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) in Dominica…reports Asin Lite News
Fugitive diamantaire Mehul Choksi, who is wanted by the CBI and the ED in connection with the Rs 13,500 crore Punjab National Bank (PNB) loan fraud case, has reportedly been taken into custody in Dominica, media reports said.
The Antigua Observer reported that Choksi is in the custody of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) in Dominica.
Choksi was reported missing on Sunday from Antigua and Barbuda, where he had taken citizenship, sparking a manhunt for the fugitive businessman.
On Sunday, the Commissioner of the Royal Police Force of Antigua and Barbuda, Atlee Rodney, had said the force is currently following up on the whereabouts of Choksi, who is reportedly missing, local media Antigua News Room had reported.
CBI sources here said that he was captured on the basis of the red corner notice issued by Interpol earlier.
However, another CBI source said that the agency is yet to get an official confirmation about the capture of Choksi.
Choksi, an accused in the over Rs 13,500 crore PNB fraud case along with his nephew Nirav Modi, has been residing in Antigua and Berbuda since January 4, 2018.
The CBI and ED, which have filed separate chargesheets in the case, are trying for the extradition of Choksi.
Choksi’s lawyer, Vijay Agarwal, had told IANS that reports of the businessman going missing were true.
