Belgian court clears extradition of Mehul Choksi to India in PNB fraud case

Paving the way to extradite Indian fugitive Mehul Choksi the Antwerp Court of Appeal has found that the offences attributed to fugitive diamond traders are extraditable under both Indian and Belgian lawThe consideration accepted by the Belgian court has made the way clear for Choksirsquos return to India The fugitive Indian diamond trader after being extradited from Belgium will face trial in the Punjab National Bank PNB fraud caseAs reported by news agency ANI in its detailed judgement the Belgian court observed that the offences shall be punishable under Indian law by virtue of Sections 120B read with 201 409 420 and 477A of the Indian Penal Code IPC Sections 7 and 132 read with 131c and d of the Prevention of Corruption Act 1988 each carrying a sentence of more than one yearThe Antwerp Court of Appeal further ruled that the conduct alleged against Choksi for criminal organisation swindle embezzlement and forgery is also punishable under Belgian law under Articles 66 196 197 213 240 241 245 246 247 SSSS24 324ab and 496 of the Belgian Criminal Code satisfying the principle of dual criminality required for extraditionHowever the foreign court did exclude one charge that was applied to Mehul Choksi causing the disappearance of evidence under Section 201 IPC stating that this offence is not recognised under Belgian law and therefore cannot be part of the enforceable declarationThe judgement further clarified that the alleged acts occurred in India between December 31 2016 and January 1 2019 and that prosecution is not timebarred under either Indian or Belgian lawThe Antwerp court while rejecting Choksis arguments stated that the extradition request was politically motivated or violated his fundamental rights It further stated that the alleged offences cannot be considered political military or nonextraditable tax offences and that there are no grounds to believe that the request was made with the intention of prosecuting or punishing a person on the grounds of his race religion nationality or political affiliationThe Belgian court also dismissed Choksis longstanding claim that he was kidnapped from Antigua on Indias instructions noting that it cannot be inferred from the documents supplied by the person concerned that he was kidnapped in Antigua on the instructions of the Indian authorities as per PTIThe court found that the INTERPOL Commission for the Control of Files CCF decision dated 12 October 2022 was inconclusive and cautious The expert reports submitted by Prof Dr F Tulkens Sir K Jones and E Fitzgerald KC did not alter the findings reported PTIThe court observed that Choksis defence had submitted a huge collection of documents including press articles case law and NGO reports about Indian prisons but found that none of them established a real or present risk of illtreatment or denial of justice It said comparisons with cases of Sikh activists or prisoners in Tihar Jail were not applicable to Choksis situationThe ruling stated that The documentation provided by the person concerned is not sufficient to establish in concrete terms that he personally runs a real present and serious risk of being subjected to flagrant denial of justice or to torture or inhuman and degrading treatment in the requesting State as stated by news agency PTIThe court further concluded that Choksi had provided no credible evidence to suggest that he would be denied medical care or fair treatment in IndiaWith inputs from PTI