The name Mehul Choksi has become synonymous with one of India’s biggest financial frauds. Known as the mastermind behind the infamous Punjab National Bank (PNB) scam, Choksi’s story has taken people by surprise. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in India have been relentlessly pursuing Choksi. According to recent media reports, it was claimed that Choksi may have had staged his kidnapping to get an upper hand against extradition to India.
Choksi and the PNB Scam: A Quick Recap
Mehul Choksi, a once-prominent Indian diamantaire and owner of the Gitanjali Group, allegedly played a central role in defrauding PNB of over Rs 12,000 crore alongside his nephew, Nirav Modi. The fraud, revealed on January 25, 2018, involved fraudulent letters of undertaking (LoUs) that allowed Choksi and Modi to access significant credit without collateral. By the time PNB reported the crime, Choksi had already left India and taken refuge in Antigua and Barbuda, where he obtained citizenship in late 2017. Since then, Choksi has remained a fugitive, evading the efforts of Indian authorities to bring him to justice under the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act.
Probe By Indian Authorities
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in India have been relentlessly pursuing Choksi, seizing assets and filing multiple cases under the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act to recover losses incurred by PNB.
The ED has previously argued that Choksi meticulously planned his escape from India, obtaining Antigua’s citizenship months before the scam became public. According to the agency, his Antiguan citizenship and subsequent flight from India on January 2, 2018, were part of a larger plan to secure his freedom. Choksi’s legal team, however, disputes this, claiming that his passport revocation prevented him from returning to India and that his flight was unrelated to the PNB case.
As reported by media outlets like The Financial Express and The Republic, the animated viral video talks about how Mehul Choksi absconded from Antigua and Barbuda in May 2021. The video, not verified independently by Zee News, alleged that Paul Stephane Emmanuel and Leonard Anthony Cole—who were allegedly hired to transport him to Cuba, a country which has no extradition treaty with India. The video claimed that Choksi planned his “kidnapping” to spark a new investigation to delay or halt his extradition, along with his brother Chetan Chinubhai Choksi, they allegedly bribed officials in the Caribbean islands. The video claims that Jolly Harbour—where Choksi supposedly ‘disappeared’—is lined with CCTV cameras and fencing, making a covert abduction nearly impossible. It also suggests that Choksi hired an elite team of lawyers to fortify his narrative of victimhood, further muddying the waters of truth.
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