Unable to return ‘due to reasons beyond his control’: Choksi’s complaint
Key accused in the multi-million dollar PNB scandal, Diamantaire Mehul Choksi, has informed a special Mumbai court that he cannot be considered a “fugitive economic offender” (FEO) because he has been unable to return to India “due to reasons beyond his control.”
Chowksi asks court to summon files
Through his attorney Vijay Aggarwal, Choksi had submitted a motion requesting that the court call for a number of pertinent documents. According to Choksi, the documents requested are from the Mumbai passport office and “will throw light on the reason why the passport has been suspended for reason ‘Security Threat to India.’ That the same will demonstrate that Choksi was unable to return to India due to circumstances beyond his control, and hence Section 2(f) (ii), being abroad, refuses to return to India to face criminal prosecution, is not satisfied.”
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Section 2(f) (ii) of the Fugitive Offenders Act states that only such a person shall be declared an offender under the act if any individual against whom a warrant for arrest in relation to a scheduled offence has been issued by any court in India and who, while abroad, refuses to return to India to face criminal prosecution.
According to Choksi, he is not refusing to return, nor did he leave the nation to evade prosecution. The runaway diamantaire said that Indian officials had suspended his passport, and in response to a summons stating that he must appear on February 22, 2018, he made it clear that he is unable to return to India because of the suspension of his passport.
Aggarwal annexed the letter from the passport office in 2018, informing Choksi that his passport was being suspended because he posed a “security threat to India,” along with Choksi’s appeal.
“… in such circumstances, the stand of the Directorate of Enforcement that the applicant is not returning to India is vitiated as the applicant cannot be expected to return to India when his passport has been suspended,” said Aggarwal.
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In order to document any evidence that the businessman knew the suspected bank fraud was being discovered and left the nation to escape being arrested, Choksi has also requested information from the Directorate of Enforcement (ED).
