New Delhi: Fugitive diamantaire Mehul Choksi’s name has been dropped from the Interpol’s red notice in connection with the Rs 13,000 crore Punjab National Bank (PNB) fraud case.
The move is based on a petition filed by Choksi at interpol’s headquarters in Lyon, France. The CBI, however, said that it is exercising all appellate options within the Interpol for the restoration of the notice against fugitive diamond merchant Mehul Choksi.
The Red Notice is the highest level of alert issued by the 195-member Interpol to law enforcement agencies around the world to locate and detain a person accused of extradition, surrender or similar legal action. Interpol had issued a red notice against Choksi in 2018.
The notice was issued nearly 10 months after he fled India. In the same year, Choksi took citizenship of Antigua and Barbuda.
Choksi had challenged the CBI’s application to issue a red notice against him, terming the case as a result of a political conspiracy. Choksi, in his petition, had also raised issues like the prison situation in India, his personal safety and health.
According to the report, after Choksi’s petition, the matter went to the court of a five-member Interpol committee.
This committee is called the Commission for Control Files. The committee has canceled the red notice after the hearing.