Belgium's Top Court Again Rejects Mehul Choksi's Appeal Against Extradition

Brussels: Belgium’s highest court, the Court of Cassation, has again rejected Mehul Choksi’s latest challenge to the extradition order that would send him back to India in the massive Rs 13,000 crore PNB fraud case. The ruling followed an October 17 decision by the Antwerp Court of Appeal, which found the Indian arrest warrants “enforceable” and said that Mehul Choksi faced no real risk of an unfair trial or mistreatment in India. 

The court officials stated that the appeal, lodged by Choksi on October 30, was dismissed after the Cassation judges examined only the legal points and found no fault with the earlier ruling. The Belgian court's ruling on Tuesday has further cleared the path for Choksi's extradition to India. 

Choksi had asked the Court of Cassation to overturn the appellate court’s October 17 judgment. Because the Cassation court’s remit is limited to questions of law, it reviewed the case solely on procedural grounds and on whether the lower court had applied Belgian and international extradition law correctly. The judges concluded that the Antwerp court had done so, and therefore the appeal was thrown out.

Fugitive Mehul Choksi Is Accused In Rs 13,000 Crore PNB Fraud

In its October ruling, the Antwerp Court of Appeal upheld India’s request for extradition in the Punjab National Bank fraud case. The court found that the offences Choksi is charged with, criminal conspiracy, cheating, embezzlement, forgery and related financial crimes, are punishable under Indian law and have clear equivalents in Belgian law, satisfying the dual‑criminality requirement. One charge, concerning the alleged disappearance of evidence under Section 201 of the Indian Penal Code, was excluded because Belgian law contains no identical provision.

The appeal court also dismissed Choksi’s claims that the case against him was politically motivated or that he had been forcibly taken from Antigua. It said the material on record did not support those allegations.

A key factor in the Belgian judges’ decision was the detailed assurances given by Indian authorities. They told the court that, once extradited, Choksi would be held in Barrack No. 12 of Mumbai’s Arthur Road Jail, a facility that offers private sanitary amenities and that he would remain under judicial supervision. His movements would be restricted to medical appointments or court appearances, and there was no credible evidence of mistreatment or an unfair trial.

Choksi was picked up in Antwerp on April 11, 2025, following India’s formal extradition request submitted on August 27, 2024. He is accused, alongside his nephew Nirav Modi, of orchestrating a Rs 13,000 crore fraud at PNB, one of India’s biggest banking scandals.

The 66-year-old fugitive diamond trader Mehul Choksi is accused of orchestrating a Rs 13,000 crore fraud at Punjab National Bank (PNB), with investigators alleging that he alone siphoned off about Rs 6400 crore. He fled to Antigua in early 2018, was later spotted in Belgium and arrested on April 11 on an Indian extradition request.

The Court of Cassation’s rejection means the extradition order now moves forward, though Choksi still has a short window of 15 days to lodge a further appeal on legal grounds . The Indian officials have already given Belgium assurances on prison conditions, medical care and human‑rights treatment, which the Belgian judges cited as part of their reasoning. With the Court of Cassation’s rejection, the temporary suspension of the extradition order is lifted. Belgian officials said that, subject to the completion of the remaining formalities, the extradition can now be carried out, bringing India a step closer to securing Choksi’s return to face trial.

The government sources have welcomed the decision, saying it validates the extensive evidence compiled by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the assurances provided to the Belgian authorities. They added that the case will now proceed through the Indian legal system, where Choksi will face charges of cheating, conspiracy and corruption.