Published
Jun 18, 2019
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Mehul Choksi files affidavit with Bombay High Court stating he did not leave India under suspicious circumstances

Published
Jun 18, 2019

Jeweller Mehul Choksi stated that he left India before news of his alleged fraud at the Punjab National Bank broke for a medical check up and not to avoid justice in a new affidavit presented to the Bombay High Court. 

Mehul Choksi maintains that he left India for medical reasons and not to avoid arrest connected to the PNB fraud he his implicated in


Choksi’s lawyer, Vijay Aggarwal, presented his latest affidavit to the Bombay High Court on June 17 in another attempt to have his name cleared of fraud.

"I have not left the country under suspicious circumstances," read the affidavit, as reported by the Press Trust of India.

Choksi left India for good in January 2018 and news of the alleged fraud involving him and his nephew Nirav Modi surfaced soon after. Numerous Indian government authorities have repeatedly requested that Choksi to return to India from Antigua where he currently resides to stand trial for the alleged PNB fraud. However, Choksi maintains that he cannot do so for medical reasons. 

Choksi has provided medical records intended to prove that he cannot travel to India but the previous hearing at the Bombay High Court on June 3 saw the Enforcement Directorate criticise these documents. Notably, the ED stated that Choksi provided only copies and no original documents, there were gaps in the records, and despite claims of a serious condition, no specialist doctor’s reports were provided. 

The ED has moved the Bombay High Court to have Choksi labelled as a fugitive economic offender under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. Choksi’s lawyer is attempting to block the move as it would allow the ED to confiscate Choksi’s property in India to encourage him to return to India to stand trial. 

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