Belgian court rules Mehul Choksi faces no risk of unfair trial in India

A Belgian court has ruled that fugitive diamantaire Mehul Choksi, the main accused in the ₹13,000 crore Punjab National Bank (PNB) scam, faces “no risk” of being denied a fair trial or subjected to ill-treatment if extradited to India.

A four-member indictment chamber at the Court of Appeals in Antwerp found no infirmity in the orders issued by the pretrial chamber of the Antwerp district court on November 29, 2024. The district court had deemed arrest warrants issued by a Mumbai special court in May 2018 and June 2021 as “enforceable”, allowing Choksi’s extradition.

Dismissing Choksi’s appeal against the district court, the Court of Appeals held that the 66-year-old businessman failed to provide “concretely plausible” evidence of a “genuine risk” of torture or denial of justice.

The order comes as a strong validation of India’s case seeking his extradition, though Choksi retains the option of appealing to Belgium’s Supreme Court, officials said.

The Court of Appeals noted that the documents submitted by Choksi did not substantiate his claim of being subjected to a political trial. “It is up to the subject to provide evidence demonstrating substantial grounds to believe that there is a genuine risk of ill-treatment upon extradition,” the court said.

Rejecting his arguments that he may not receive a fair trial, the Belgian court held that the documentation provided by him is insufficient to make it “concretely plausible” that he faces a real, present, and serious risk of flagrant denial of justice, torture, or inhuman and degrading treatment in India.

Choksi’s claims that he was kidnapped from Antigua and Barbuda by Indian agencies and tortured in Dominica were not supported by the court, which stated that the records submitted do not “conclusively indicate” that he was a victim of such a kidnapping.

The fugitive had cited the October 12, 2022, decision of the Commission for the Control of Interpol’s Files (CCF), an independent body that ensures compliance with Interpol rules, which allowed the Red Notice against him to be dropped on alleged kidnapping grounds, as evidence that he might face torture in India. The Court of Appeals observed that the CCF’s decision “provides no clarity on the matter” and is “formulated cautiously and conditionally”.

Choksi did not present substantial documentation to support a claim that the independence of Indian judges could put his right to a fair trial at risk, the court noted.

According to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), of the ₹13,000 crore scam, Choksi alone siphoned off ₹6,400 crore. He had fled to Antigua and Barbuda in January 2018, days before the scam was detected, and was later spotted in Belgium, reportedly seeking medical treatment.

India had sent an extradition request to Belgium on August 27, 2024, based on arrest warrants issued by the Mumbai special court. The public prosecutor at the Court of First Instance in Antwerp, Division Turnhout, initiated an action on November 25, 2025, seeking enforcement of these warrants.

The pretrial chamber of the Antwerp District Court, Turnhout Division, in its November 29, 2024, order, declared the Mumbai-issued arrest warrants enforceable, except for the order related to “causing the disappearance of evidence of the crime.”

India has provided multiple assurances to Belgium regarding Choksi’s safety, the charges he would face during trial, prison arrangements, human rights, and medical needs.