“In July 2024, information was received from the National Central Bureau, Brussels that Mr. Choksi was undergoing some medical treatment in Belgium. Basis that information, several documents related to him were shared with NCB, Brussels. Thereafter, on consultations with the officials of the CBI and Ministry of External Affairs, a precise extradition request dated October 25, 2024, as per the desired model of Belgium authorities, was sent to the Government of Kingdom of Belgium,” said a senior official.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has so far attached and seized assets worth ₹2,566 crore in connection with the investigation against the Punjab National Bank scam case “mastermind”.
The properties, attached through nine separate orders, include 105 immovable assets worth more than ₹1,600 crore – flats, office units, land parcels, commercial buildings and factory units in Mumbai, Raigad, Nashik, and Nagpur in Maharashtra, Kolkata in West Bengal, Surat in Gujarat, Villupuram in Tamil Nadu, and Ranga Reddy district in Telangana. Jewellery, diamonds and precious metals worth about ₹230 crore have been attached. Properties worth close to ₹85 crore have been attached in the UAE, U. S., Thailand, and Japan, whereas movable properties valued at ₹598 crore have been seized following search operations at 136 locations across India.
As part of the initiatives for recovery and restitution of assets, the ED has facilitated the handover of properties worth about 150 crore to the liquidator of Mr. Choksi’s company Gitanjali Gems Limited. The remaining assets secured to banks are being handed over as per the court order dated September 10, 2024. In February this year, the court also allowed the handover of non-mortgaged properties to the liquidator for monetisation.
In this case, so far 15 Letters Rogatory (letter of request) have been sent to Hong Kong, Singapore, Thailand, the U.S., Belgium, China, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the UAE for details of the companies, assets, bank accounts, execution of provisional asset attachment orders, and other information related to Mr. Choksi and his companies. Accordingly, assets worth about ₹85 crore have been attached in Thailand, U.S., Japan, and the UAE.
It is alleged that between 2014 and 2017, Mr. Choksi, through his beneficially owned companies named Gitanjali Gems Limited, Gili India, and Nakshatra Brands, fraudulently procured Letters of Undertaking and Foreign Letters of Credit worth about $952.76 million (equivalent to ₹6,097.63 crore) from the Punjab National Bank, Mumbai.
The ED summoned Mr. Choksi thrice for personal appearance, but he did not join the probe. An open-ended non-bailable warrant was issued against him on August 8, 2018. His passport was also revoked following the agency’s request. One main and two supplementary prosecution complaints were filed against him and 13 others on June 28, 2018, April 7, 2020, and March 14, 2022.
Separately, the ED moved an application dated July 10, 2018, requesting to declare him a fugitive economic offender and for confiscation of his properties then attached/seized worth ₹2,345 crore.
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