The Enforcement Directorate (ED) filed a plea in 2018 to declare diamond trader Mehul Choksi a fugitive economic offender, but the case remains pending due to numerous delays caused by Choksi’s legal team. Choksi is absconding in connection with the Punjab National Bank (PNB) fraud case and has been living in Belgium since January 2018, claiming he was seeking medical treatment. The ED had moved a plea to declare Choksi and his nephew, Nirav Modi, fugitive economic offenders, but Modi was declared a fugitive economic offender in 2020, while Choksi’s case remains pending.
Choksi’s legal team has raised two key issues in his defense: that his passport was revoked, preventing him from returning to India, and that he left India for medical treatment before a case was registered against him. However, the ED has countered that Choksi could have approached any Indian authority to facilitate his return if he was genuinely serious about returning to India.
The case has been delayed due to numerous applications filed by Choksi’s legal team, seeking adjournments and stalling progress on the main plea. Court records show that over 50 applications have been filed, with some arguments lasting only 10 minutes before new delays were requested. The ED sources reveal that the defense lawyers often submit applications requiring weeks for review, further stalling the proceedings.
Recently, Choksi’s lawyers submitted a plea to introduce documents showing he is undergoing cancer treatment in Belgium, claiming this evidence is crucial to explain his inability to return to India. The ED is awaiting a final court decision on Choksi’s plea, which has been pending for over seven years, despite the government’s efforts to expedite the process under the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act, 2018.