CBI lodges 3 fresh cases against Mehul Choksi

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has filed three fresh cases against fugitive diamantaire Mehul Choksi for allegedly cheating several banks including Punjab National Bank and ICICI Bank of ₹6,746 crore, people familiar with the development said.

The first case, registered on Wednesday, against Choksi, his firm Gitanjali Gems Ltd and its senior executives, pertains to cheating a consortium of 28 banks led by the ICICI Bank of ₹5,564 crore between 2010 and 2018. It has been alleged that Choksi and other accused “were involved in fudging of accounts, siphoning of funds and utilizing the sanctioned credit limits not for genuine trade transactions” according to the FIR.

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Another case, also lodged on Wednesday, pertains to cheating a consortium of nine member banks led by Punjab National Bank (PNB) of ₹807 crore by Choksi, his firm Nakshatra Brands Ltd and others between 2010 and 2018 by diverting the funds.

The third FIR pertains to cheating of PNB of funds worth ₹375 crore by Choksi and his firm Gili India Ltd in the same period.

Reacting to the cases, Choksi’s lawyer Vijay Aggarwal said : “As per vigilance manual of the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) and circular issued by the ministry of finance on May 13, 2015, there can only be one consolidated first information report (FIR) against one group of companies. Registering separate FIRs for each loan is witch hunting and is akin to lodging separate FIR for each brick in case of allegation of an illegal wall.”

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The anti-corruption probe agency has so far registered at least seven separate FIRs against Choksi and his companies/associates since 2018. It has also filed multiple charge sheets.

The fugitive businessman is currently residing in Antigua and Barbuda, where he fled immediately after the Punjab National Bank fraud worth ₹13,578 crore (in which his nephew Nirav Modi is co-accused) came to notice in 2018. In the PNB fraud, Choksi alone is accused of cheating the public sector bank of ₹6,097 crore while another investigation pertaining to ₹942 crore fraud by his firm Asmi Jewellery is also underway.

In May last year, he mysteriously reached Dominica, a small island in Caribbean and attempts were made by the Indian government to get him deported instead of going through tedious process of extradition in Antigua, where he is a citizen. However, Indian agencies failed to get him from Dominica .

Dominica dropped illegal entry proceedings against Mehul Choksi based on a report by Antiguan Royal Police, which said that the businessman was abducted from the country.