New Delhi: Diamond trader and fugitive of India Mehul Choksi
has been reported missing from his home in Antigua and Barbuda this week. He
has been a Caribbean citizen since he fled India in 2018. Mehul Choksi is the
uncle of Nirav Modi, the one charged for the PNB (Punjab National Bank) scam.
He fled just days before the PNB scam came to light.
As per reports, his arrest in Dominica might hint at his extradition to India. Dominica has hinted they are willing to hand over accused Mehul Choski to India through Antigua.
The arrest of Mehul Choksi has brought into light the top fugitives of India like Lalit Modi, who is wanted for the defrauding case of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for a sum of Rs 753 crores. He fled India in the year 2010 stating his threat to life. He is reportedly in London.
Over the years, the government of India has not been successful in the extradition of many fugitives of India. In the year 2019, the government had replied to the court that efforts were being made to deport the declared 72 fugitives to India from different countries. However, as per the RTI report, only 2 fugitives could be deported to India till now. There are many such cases on standby and the deportation of the accused has been unsuccessful.
Nirav Modi is another offender who comes on the list of the top fugitives who have fled India in the year 2017. India had approached the authorities of the UK for Nirav Modi's extradition to India and the legal limitations of his extradition were also cleared. However, Nirav Modi has filed for an appeal against his deportation which has delayed the process further.
Former Rajya Sabha MP and Businessman, Vijay Mallaya is also accused of banking fraud are also wanted in India. He fled the country in 2016 and is in London. India has won all the cases in UK court for his deportation to India. Formal approval from the authorities is awaited. Another high-profile fugitive of India Sanjay Bhandari who has fled the country. He is accused of several money laundering cases. He is also resisting his deportation to Indian in the UK court. He is alleged to have links with Priyanka Gandhi's husband Robert Vadra, although Robert Vadra has denied any such connections with the defaulter.
A Diamond businessman of India, Jatin Mehta is also a declared fugitive of India who fled the country with his family in 2013. He is known as the third biggest fugitive of the country and is wanted in a bank fraud case of the firm Winsome Diamonds and Jewellery. Earlier he was reportedly in the Caribbean Islands St Kitts but reports in 2020 state that he is settled in a Southeast European country. Reports hint that he is in Montenegro and starting new firms.
Nitin Sardesara, his wife, and his brother-in-law Hitesh Patel has also been declared fugitives in India recently. They fled to Nigeria in the year 2017. They are wanted to defrauding an amount of Rs. 15, 600 crore from a bank in the name of Sterling Biotech Group. Recently, they have filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court of India claiming that Nigerian and Albanian authorities have denied the extradition request of India.
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