India`s envoy likely to visit Dominica next week to seek Mehul Choksi`s extradition

As per a media report, India`s High Commissioner to Port of Spain, Arun Kumar Sahu is likely to travel to Dominica next week seeking formal extradition of Mehul Choksi.

New Delhi: India is all set to send an envoy to bring back fugitive diamantaire Mehul Choksi from Dominica. 

Citing sources, CNN-News18 in its report said that India’s High Commissioner to Port of Spain, Arun Kumar Sahu is likely to travel to Dominica next week to seek formal extradition of Mehul Choksi. 

As per the report, India has been in touch with both the governments in Dominica and Antigua Choksi after Choksi was arrested on Wednesday. 

Earlier, the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court In the High Court of Justice Commonwealth of Dominica put a stay on repatriation of the businessman from Dominica. The High Court of Justice in Dominica "restrained" the authorities from "removing" Choksi till further orders, PTI reported. 

The next hearing in the matter is slated for May 28 at 9 am local time there. 

Meanwhile, Wayne Marsh, Choksi's lawyer in Dominica, alleged that his client was ‘severely beaten’ and was ‘abducted’ in Antigua and taken to Dominica. Further, he said they were denied access to their client and it was only on May 27 that he was allowed to speak to Choksi.

The 62-year-old businessman, who has been residing in Antigua and Barbuda since 2018 after his escape from India, had gone missing on Sunday under mysterious circumstances. Later, he was taken into custody by authorities of Dominica where he was captured 'trying to flee'. 

Mehul Choksi and his nephew Nirav Modi are wanted for allegedly siphoning Rs 13,500 crore of public money from the state-run Punjab National Bank using letters of undertaking.