Mehul Choksi names 'friend' Babara, Indian agents in his 'abduction' complaint to Antigua Police
New Delhi, Jun 7: Fugitive Diamantaire Mehul Choksi who is held in Dominica after his mysterious disappearance from Antigua and Barbuda has alleged that his "friend" Barbara Jabarica was instrumental in his abduction which involved musclemen claiming to be Antiguan Police and mercenaries looking like Indians.
The police have started the investigation after receiving a complaint from Choksi, Antigua Prime Minister Gaston Browne said.
In his complaint to the Royal Police Force of Antigua and Barbuda accessed by PTI, Choksi has named Jabarica, Narinder Singh and Gurmit Singh besides other unidentified people as accused.
Choksi has alleged that Jabarica who had developed "friendly terms with him" over the past year was an "integral part" of his abduction purportedly orchestrated by musclemen claiming to be Antiguan Police and mercenaries looking like Indians.
The absconding businessman, wanted in Rs 13,500 crore banking scam in India, is getting treatment under detention at the Dominica China Friendship Hospital, Roseau.
Choksi who was held for illegal entry in the neighbouring island country of Dominica has alleged that he was invited by Jabarica to her home at Marina in Antigua on May 23 at around 5 pm.
The diamantaire claimed she used to reside opposite his residential complex in Jolly Harbour, before moving to Coco Bay Hotel, and had developed friendly terms with his staff and even accompanied him on walks regularly.
"On May 23, 2021, she requested that we deviate from our normal schedule of meeting in a public place directly, and asked me to pick her up at her house, which is located on the road next to the Marina, numbered as 407," he said.
Choksi alleged that when he went to her house she asked him to wait inside as she would finish her wine before going out.
While he was waiting, 8-10 musclemen claiming to be Antiguan Policemen barged in and beat him to a pulp, took his wallet, Rolex watch, mobile phone, and tased him before handcuffing, gagging and blindfolding him, the businessman claimed.
Choksi said they told him that if tried to resist he would be booked for "obstruction of justice".
He alleged that they bundled him on a wheelchair in a comatose state and took him through the backside of Jabarica's residence on a small watercraft.
"The manner in which Jabarica conducted herself, including by not helping me get free from the said persons and her subsequent lack of initiative in contacting the police clearly points to the fact that she was an integral part of this entire scheme to kidnap me," Choksi alleged.
He claimed that he was then transferred on a bigger vessel where two Indian men who looked like highly experienced mercenaries or contractors "hired specifically for this purpose of detaining and abducting me in such a brutal and unlawful manner" and three men of Caribbean decent were present.
The Indian men told him that he was under surveillance for over an year with meticulous details of his schedule maintained by them. He was then grilled about his off shore account, money, and bank accounts, Choksi claimed.
Choksi alleged he was made to speak to a person named Narinder Singh who claimed to be in-charge of the operation.
Singh allegedly pressurised him to co-operate with the captors and state that he had accompanied them on his own free volition which of course was not true, Choksi alleged.
"Upon hearing me resist, he threatened me by promising that physical harm would befall upon me and my family if I did not comply. He also said to leave my friendship with Barbara Jabarica out of the picture as it would lead to a public scandal and cause grievous hurt to my wife," the complaint alleged.
Choksi alleged that after nearly 15-17 hours, the boat stopped at around 9.30-10 am Antiguan time and he was told that the destination had arrived.
"I was told that I had been brought to this special location to give an interview to a high ranking Indian politician," Choksi alleged.
Choksi claimed he was told that his citizenship would be fixed in Dominica and he would soon be repatriated to India.
The purported plan hit a roadblock as Dominica was closed and we had to stay on the boat all day, claimed the fugitive businessman.
"This caused much dismay amongst the crew members as they were constantly getting radio calls enquiring as to why my operation' had not yet been completed. They were getting harried as they were supposed to have handed me over to the authorities', Choksi alleged.
Choksi said 1500 dollars robbed from him were given to the boatman claiming that after the interview, he would take him back to Antigua.
However, there was a "change of plan" and Choksi was told that he would be handed over to Dominican Coast Guard. After a long wait, the Dominican Police chief along with the coast guard informed him that he was caught because of an Interpol Red Notice.
At the port, Choksi was handed over to an officer who took him to the Central Police Station. Choksi claimed he was not allowed to call his legal team, refused any change of clothes and denied medical treatment at the police station.
"Looking back, I have no doubts that the agents if given enough reason and opportunity, would have not thought twice before killing me. They seemed detached from the realm of law and procedures, he said.
According to Choksi, the only way those agents could have had access to some private information regarding his household and schedule, would be through their co-conspirator Barbara Jabarica.
After he was given access to his lawyers in Dominca, they filed a habeas corpus petition before the high court which had adjourned the hearing.
He was also brought before a Roseau magistrate, on the orders of high court, to answer charges of illegal entry where he pleaded not guilty but was denied bail.
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Balendra Shah's RSP makes history, registers landmark victory in Nepal elections
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Kathmandu (PTI): Rapper-turned-politician Balendra Shah's RSP is all set to form the next government in Nepal after securing sweeping victory in crucial general elections on Saturday, decimating the established parties in the politically fragile nation.
Popularly known as Balen, the 35-year-old prime ministerial candidate of the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) defeated four-time prime minister KP Sharma Oli, the chair of Nepal's legacy party, the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist–Leninist) -- CPN-UML -- by a huge margin of about 50,000 votes in Jhapa-5 constituency.
Balen, 35, secured 68,348 votes against 74-year-old Oli's 18,734, the Election Commission (EC) said.
He is expected to be the next prime minister of Nepal, reflecting a public mood of rejection of established parties. The RSP, which was formed in 2022 by Ravi Lamichhane, has won 72 seats out of the 90 seats for which results were declared by 9:30 pm, according to the Election Commission (EC).
RSP's seats include a clean sweep in all 10 constituencies of Kathmandu district even as it is leading in 52 seats across the country, the EC data showed.
Legacy parties failed to convince voters for whom the major issues included fighting corruption and an end to nepotism apart from a generational change in political leadership of the Himalayan nation.
The Nepali Congress (NC) won 10 and was leading in eight seats; the CPN-(UML) won just four seats and is leading in eight; the Nepali Communist Party (NCP) won two seats and is leading in five, the Shrama Shakti Party (SSP) was leading in three seats, and the Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) won one seat, the EC data showed. Among the winners is one independent.
Nepal witnessed about 60 per cent voter turnout during the March 5 elections to the House of Representatives. The counting of votes started late Thursday night and as of 9:30 pm Saturday, counting was in progress in the remaining of the total 165 constituencies, the Election Commission said.
The election was being closely watched by India, which is hoping for a stable government in the politically fragile Himalayan nation to take forward the developmental partnership between the two sides.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday congratulated the people and government of Nepal for the successful conduct of elections. “It is heartening to see my Nepali sisters and brothers exercise their democratic rights so vibrantly. This historic milestone is a proud moment in Nepal's democratic journey,” Modi said in a post on X.
Modi also said that as a close friend and neighbour, India remains steadfast in its commitment to working closely with the people of Nepal and its new government to scale new heights of shared peace, progress and prosperity.
Oli, who too was projected as the PM face of the CPN-UML, wished Balen for a full five year tenure for his government in the Himalayan nation that has seen 14 governments in the last 18 years.
“Balen babu, congratulations for the victory. I wish your five year tenure be trouble free, successful and hearty congratulations,” Oli wrote in his social media post and attached a 2022 photo showing him gifting a tabla to Balen after the rapper-turned-politician won Kathmandu mayor's election as an independent.
The RSP, which projected Balendra Shah 'Balen' as its prime ministerial candidate and had organised its first election campaign in Janakpur in Madhesh, is heading towards a clean sweep of the province.
‘Balen’, as he is popularly known, projected himself as the “son of Madhesh” during the campaign, with the party launching the campaign with 'Ab ki bar Balendra Sarkar' (This time there will be Balendra’s government) tagline.
Of the total 32 seats in eight districts of Madhesh province, the RSP has won eight and is leading in 22 other constituencies, the EC said.
The party is also making a clean sweep in the Kathmandu Valley winning all 10 seats of Kathmandu district and two in Bhaktapur and two in Lalitpur district.
The party is also leading in the remaining one seat of the Kathmandu Valley with a huge margin, possibly as a result of a massive road show led by Balen in all 15 constituencies on the last day of the election campaign.
RSP chairman Lamichhane won with a huge margin from Chitwan-2 constituency, marking his third consecutive victory with 54,402 votes against his nearest rival NC's Mina Kumari Kharel, who received 14,564 votes.
According to the Election Commission, former prime minister and NCP leader Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda won from Rukum Purba district by securing 10,240 votes against his rival Lilamani Gautam of CPN-(UML), who got 3,462 votes.
RPP's Gyanendra Shahi won from the Jumla constituency of Karnali province by defeating his closest rival Naresh Bhandari of the NCP and became the only candidate of the pro-monarchist RPP to have secured a seat in the House of Representatives.
The election also saw 10 women candidates win, nine of them from the RSP while one from NC.
Meanwhile, the RSP is also leading in proportional voting system with the party bagging 474,266 votes followed by Nepali Congress with 160,384. The CPN (UML) has received 127,841, Nepali Communist Party 65,363, the RPP 34,154, and Shrama Shakti Party 17,437 votes till now.
Out of a total of 275 members of the Parliament, 165 are being elected through direct voting, while the remaining 110 through a proportionate method.
Around 3,400 candidates were vying for 165 seats under direct voting, and 3,135 candidates for 110 seats through proportionate voting.
The Gen Z youth, through their two-day intensified protests on September 8 and 9 last year, ousted Prime Minister Oli of the CPN-(UML), who was heading a coalition government with the backing of Nepali Congress that enjoyed nearly two-thirds majority support.
Though Balen was a popular choice to lead the interim government after Oli's ouster, he declined to lead the interim administration, saying he would prefer to contest the parliamentary election for a full term.
In January, he joined the RSP and was soon declared the party's prime ministerial candidate.
The major issues raised by Gen Z before and during the election campaign were anti-corruption, good governance, an end to nepotism, generational change in political leadership, etc.
Sunil Babu Pant, former MP and a political analyst, said, “The victory of Rastriya Swatantra Party in the March 5 elections and the expectation that Balen Shah could emerge as Nepal's next Prime Minister reflects the people's deep rooted frustration with the old political order and their hope for a new direction.”
“As Balen assumes the country's leadership, his first responsibility must be to demonstrate that corruption will not be tolerated under any circumstances,” he said.
Balen will also face a complex geopolitical challenge, Pant said, adding, “He must prove that he is not a puppet of any external power, western or otherwise. Nepal's leadership must carefully balance relations with all global actors and pursue an independent foreign policy that prioritises the national interest.”
