Mehul Choksi's counsel files affidavit in Dominica court, says left India only for treatment Mehul Choksi left India in January 2018, days before his name propped up among the main accused in a loan scam which defrauded the state-run Punjab National Bank (PNB) to the tune of Rs 13,500 crore. MONEYCONTROL NEWS JUNE 06, 2021 / 05:24 PM IST

 

Businessman Mehul Choksi exiting the magistrate's court in Roseau, Dominica, on June 4, 2021. (AP Photo/Clyde Jno Baptiste)

The counsel of fugitive Indian diamantaire Mehul Choksi has submitted an affidavit before the Dominica High Court, reportedly claiming that he had left India only for medical treatment.

The affidavit was submitted in relation to the extradition case - the proceedings of which have been reportedly adjourned by the high court till July.

According to Choksi, he is ready to cooperate with the investigation launched by India against him, and has also invited the country's probing officials to "interview" him in the case.

“I have extended an invitation to Indian authorities to interview me and ask any questions that they may have of me in relation to any investigation that they are conducting against me," Times of India quoted Choksi as stating in the affidavit, after gaining access to the document.

“I did not evade law enforcement in India. There was no warrant against me by the law enforcement authorities in India when I left India to seek medical treatment in the United States of America," the 62-year-old reportedly further added.

The Dominican Public Prosecution Service had, during the high court hearing, appealed to the bench to clear his extradition to India.

Notably, Choksi left India in January 2018, days before his name propped up among the main accused in a loan scam which defrauded the state-run Punjab National Bank (PNB) to the tune of Rs 13,500 crore.

Choksi had been residing in Antigua and Barbados for over the last three years, after acquiring the country's citizenship through an investment programme in 2017.

On May 23, he mysteriously went missing in Antigua, and was found two days later at a beach in neighbouring Dominica. He was detained by the country's authority for allegedly entering the country illegally.

Choksi's lawyers have, however, denied the charge, claiming that he was "abducted" and brought to Dominica to pave the way for his extradition.

While Choksi's bail plea was rejected by a magisterial court earlier this week, a high court judge in Dominica would hear his petition seeking release from prison on June 8, the Antigua News Room reported.