A special court in Mumbai on Friday turned down Mehul Choksi’s request to stop the process of declaring him a Fugitive Economic Offender (FEO). This is a big blow for the diamond businessman, who is the main accused in the massive Punjab National Bank (PNB) scam. Choksi, arrested in Belgium back in April 2025, had asked the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court to drop the Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) push to label him an FEO.
Choksi’s argument and ED’s pushback
Choksi told the court he’s already locked up in Belgium over Indian cases, and India wants him extradited anyway. He said that the ED’s FEO application should be rejected since he’s not really on the run. But the ED vehemently opposed the appeal. They said the 66-year-old has no plans to come back to India and is fighting the extradition tooth and nail.
The agency argued that FEO cases only wrap up if the accused shows up in court, so this can’t stop now. They called his plea baseless and pushed for dismissal.
What FEO means and the scam background
Under the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act, if someone is wanted for crimes worth at least ₹100 crore, skips India, and won’t return, courts can declare them an FEO. That lets authorities grab their properties right away. Choksi and his nephew Nirav Modi are the top accused in the ₹13,000-crore PNB fraud. They tricked the bank with fake Letters of Undertaking (LoUs) and foreign letters of credit by bribing officials at the Mumbai Brady House branch. The CBI and ED are handling the probe.
On 17th October, a Belgian court okayed India’s extradition request for Choksi, but he’s now appealing to their Supreme Court. Meanwhile, Nirav Modi is still stuck in a London jail fighting his own case. Choksi bolted from India in early 2018 and has been dodging justice since, even after getting caught in places like Antigua and Dominica