New Delhi | The Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) has taken a major step against fugitive businessman Mehul Choksi, filing a detailed prosecution complaint before a Mumbai court. The complaint also names his wife Priti Choksi, former ICICI Bank MD-CEO Chanda Kochhar, former executive director N.S. Kannan, several ex-Punjab National Bank (PNB) officials and many others.
The allegation: companies linked to Choksi cheated banks of over ₹13,000 crore, before he fled India in 2017.
What the complaint says
According to officials, the SFIO complaint traces the entire chain of alleged financial irregularities — how credit facilities were obtained, how funds were routed across multiple accounts, and which individuals helped facilitate the operations.
Filed last month in the Mumbai court, the complaint names several group companies allegedly used to run the network, including:
- Gitanjali Gems Ltd
- Asmi Jewellery India Pvt Ltd
- Gili India Ltd
- Nakshatra Brands Ltd
- Bezel Jewellery (formerly D’damas) along with multiple entities based in Hong Kong
The SFIO alleges that these firms were used for fund diversion, over-invoicing, and channeling money through shell entities, ultimately moving funds out of the system.
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Senior bankers also under the scanner
Apart from Kochhar and Kannan, the complaint names former PNB officers —Gokulnath Shetty, Bechu Tiwari, Yashwant Joshi and Prafful Sawant. Kochhar declined to comment, while there was no response from Kannan.
Choksi’s counsel Vijay Aggarwal argued that the SFIO complaint is “not a charge sheet,” insisting that the court cannot summon his clients without first giving them an opportunity to be heard.
“My clients cannot be termed accused at this stage we will defend them like a rock,” he said.
Where is Choksi now?
Choksi, 65, was arrested on April 11 last year in response to India’s extradition request and is currently lodged in a prison in Antwerp, Belgium.
Officials say the extradition proceedings are at an advanced stage and that his attempts to secure relief from Belgian courts have so far failed. Investigators allege multiple instances of fraud:
- ₹6,097 crore involving PNB
- ₹5,564 crore allegedly cheated from a 28-bank consortium led by ICICI Bank
- ₹807 crore from a PNB-led consortium of nine banks
- ₹375 crore linked to Gili India Ltd
- Wide investigation from bank officers to foreign links
An SFIO officer said the probe examined:
- the role of bank officials who helped secure credit,
- the real scale of jewellery business operations,
- how shell companies were used to move funds, and
- the foreign connections of firms and individuals involved.
These findings, officials said, have now been incorporated into the prosecution complaint. The court has fixed April 9 as the next date of hearing.
Extradition and the legal battle ahead
India’s extradition request cites several sections of the Indian Penal Code120B (criminal conspiracy), 201, 409, 420, 477A, along with provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act (Sections 7 and 13).
The request also invokes the UN Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (UNTOC) and the UN Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) to strengthen the case under the principle of “dual criminality.”
Officials believe the SFIO’s prosecution complaint could play a crucial role as evidence before Belgian courts as the extradition case progresses.
