India is in contact with the government of Dominica regarding the possibility of repatriating diamantaire Mehul Choksi, informed sources in New Delhi said on Thursday.
Mr. Choksi, wanted for defrauding banks in India, was arrested in Dominica after an Interpol Yellow Notice was issued against him.
Also read | Handover Mehul Choksi to India directly: Antigua and Barbuda PM to Dominica
“We are in touch with both the governments of Antigua and Dominica. Contact was established yesterday [on Wednesday] evening,” said an informed source who is part of the process to repatriate Mr. Choksi.
However, Dominica announced that Mr. Choksi will be sent back to Antigua as the request for repatriation came from the Antiguan authorities.
Mr. Choksi and his nephew Nirav Modi are the prime accused in the case of defrauding the Punjab National Bank and the State Bank of India of more than a billion dollars. Mr. Choksi fled to Antigua in 2018.
Also read | Mehul Choksi captured in Dominica
Mr. Choksi acquired citizenship of Antigua through a special government scheme. Mr. Modi surfaced in London where he has set up business and is fighting a case against repatriation to India. The official said India remained committed to bringing back financial fraudsters from safe sanctuaries abroad.
He faces charge of entering Dominica illegally though there are doubts about the exact circumstances in which he entered the country. Antigua, however, maintains that Mr. Choksi will not be allowed to return to the country.
Also read | Took citizenship of Antigua to expand my business, says Mehul Choksi
“We asked them not to repatriate him to Antigua. He needs to return to India where he can face the criminal charges levelled against him,” Antigua News Room quoted Prime Minister Gaston Browne as telling journalists in Antigua and Barbuda. India has friendly ties with both Antigua and Dominica that are members of CARICOM, the regional group of Caribbean island nations.
India has friendly ties with both Antigua and Dominica that are members of CARICOM, the regional group of Caribbean island nations. Prime Minister Narendra Modi met the leaders of Antigua and Dominica in 2019 during the U.N. General Assembly in New York.
