PNB Fraud Case: Mehul Choksi Denies Fugitive Status; Claims ED Misled Court

Mumbai: Diamantaire Mehul Choksi has approached the special PMLA court seeking the dismissal of the Enforcement Directorate (ED)'s plea to declare him a 'fugitive economic offender' in the multimillion dollar Punjab National Bank scam, claiming that the ED has misled the court.

The defence had claimed that ED suppressed the fact that his passport was revoked by the Indian government. The ED has been insisting that Choksi intentionally left India to avoid prosecution in the alleged fraud case. Additionally, the probe agency claimed that when he was issued a summons to join the investigation, he did not appear.

'ED Changing Stance,' Say Choksi's Lawyers

Choksi's lawyers, Vijay Agarwal, Rahul Agarwal and Jasmin Purani, have claimed that the ED has been changing its stance to provide reasons for the investigating officer to believe that Choksi intentionally avoided joining the probe. They argue that the ED has suggested that Choksi had devised a plan to leave India well in advance.