Days after a bilateral treaty facilitated the extradition of 26/11 co-conspirator Tahawwur Rana from the US, a similar accord with Belgium resulted in the arrest of fugitive Indian diamantaire Mehul Choksi there. The bilateral mechanism had to be activated as an Interpol ‘red corner’ alert issued against Choksi earlier got deleted following an allegedly botched Indian attempt to snatch him from Antigua, where he had taken citizenship. He had relocated to that tiny Caribbean nation after slipping out of India in 2018 when the Rs 13,000-crore Punjab National Bank fraud he figured in broke.
Choksi alleged he was abducted in Antigua, tortured and smuggled out to the Dominican Republic in 2021, where he was arrested for illegal entry. The charges were subsequently dropped. Choksi is the second prime suspect in the PNB case; the first is his nephew Nirav Modi. Choksi’s arrest is a good first step, but lots of paperwork and determined diplomacy need to be done for successful deportation, as Belgium has strong views on human rights. India has to combat it robustly, saying letting economic offenders off the hook would be a travesty of justice. To make a watertight case for deportation, officials have already shared two open-ended arrest warrants issued by a special court in Mumbai in 2018 and 2021.
While Rana’s extradition from the US and other criminals from a few other countries would give law enforcement agencies confidence, Choksi can be expected to parade a battery of legal eagles in his defence, citing cancer treatment and raising the issue of human rights. The possible argument that Indian laws would not apply to an Antiguan is eyewash, as the swindle happened when Choksi was an Indian. For seven years, he has managed to fob off the Enforcement Directorate’s efforts to declare him a fugitive economic offender.
India’s experience with getting fugitives deported is mixed. Nirav is in a London jail, but is yet to exhaust his legal options. Vijay Mallya continues to be out of reach. Sanjay Bhandari, another fugitive charged with tax evasion and money laundering, won a recent battle in the UK against extradition, citing India’s human rights record. India needs to visibly demonstrate that it will pursue crooks till the end of the world to bring them to justice.