Will stay here, Expand business: Mehul Choksi on his Antigua citizenship
New Delhi, July 27: Billionaire diamond merchant Mehul Choksi, who has been at the centre of the biggest bank frauds of India, today broke his silence over the status of his Antiguan citizenship. He said that he has "lawfully applied" to be registered as a citizen of the Caribbean country.
In a statement by the fugitive diamantaire, Choksi "categorically" denied allegations made against him by the Indian authorities and media.
Choksi said that he has applied to citizenship of Antigua under the Citizenship by Investment Program in which a person can take their passport on a minimum investment of one lakh dollars in National Development Fund investment fund.
"During the course of my application, I did all that was lawfully required of me to do," he said.
He added that his application for citizenship was motivated by his desire to expand his business interest in the Caribbean and to obtain visa-free travel access to 130 or so countries.
Choksi has not mentioned the reason for fleeing India. He had fled the country in the first week of January, nearly a fortnight before the country's biggest banking fraud-- the multi crore Punjab National Bank scam-- surfaced.
Choksi said that he visited the United States in January this year to receive medical treatment. In the statement, Choksi reiterated his decision to reside in Antigua and Barbuda, the country of his citizenship.
Meanwhile, the Central Bureau of Investigation has approached authorities in Antigua for details on the whereabouts of fugitive diamantaire Mehul Choksi.
Choksi had taken citizenship of Antigua in November 2017, and oath of allegiance on January 15, according to local newspaper Antigua Observer.
The CBI has booked Choksi, uncle of his alleged partner in crime Nirav Modi, in two cases related to the scam and filed charge sheet against him.
Courtesy: www.indiatoday.in
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11 more bodies retrieved from Arunachal accident site
Itanagar (PTI): Eleven more bodies were retrieved on Saturday from the deep gorge in Arunachal Pradesh's Anjaw district, where a mini-truck on which 22 labourers from Assam were travelling fell, an official said.
With this, 17 bodies have been recovered from the accident site, Anjaw's deputy commissioner Milo Kojin said.
He said three more bodies will be brought out on Sunday.
The operation, being conducted by a joint team of the NDRF and Army, resumed at 6 am.
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"The retrieval process was extremely difficult because of the treacherous terrain, and the gorge is very deep," Kojin said.
The operation was suspended around 4 pm due to low visibility and will be resumed on Sunday morning, he said.
"One person is still missing, and a search operation will be carried out tomorrow," he added.
The accident happened on the evening of December 8, around 40 km from Hayuliang towards Chaglagam in the district. On the evening of December 10, one survivor managed to climb out of the gorge and reach a nearby Border Roads Task Force (BRTF) labour camp, following which the authorities were alerted.
Six bodies were recovered from the gorge on Friday and handed over to their families on Saturday.
