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 latest development has further cleared the path for Choksi's extradition to India. 

Notably, the 66-year-old head of the Gitanjali Group, Mehul Choksi, is accused of orchestrating a Rs 13,000‑crore fraud at Punjab National Bank, 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 .

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 .