Mumbai: The managing director of the Gitanjali Group and co-accused in the Punjab National Bank (PNB) fraud case, Mehul Choksi, on Friday moved a special CBI court here for cancellation of a non-bailable warrant against him. He claimed that he had reason to believe that his return to India might endanger his life.
On May 22 this year, after taking cognisance of the second charge-sheet filed by the CBI in the Rs 12,636 crore PNB fraud, the special court issued a NBW against Choksi. Choksi, in an application filed Friday through his lawyer Sanjay Abbott, said that his apprehensions over his safety were based on what transpired during a television debate on the fraud.
He told the court that he was “shocked” to watch a debate on a national news channel where two callers phoned in to share their opinion on the fraud. The callers, Choksi claimed in his plea, “Suggested that a special team be formed to track Choksi down and shoot him to death once he was brought back to India.”
Choksi claimed that the callers said that such treatment would send out a strong signal to the society and prevent further such frauds and scams.
“From these two calls made by the callers, it is clear that the averments made by the applicant (Choksi) in the application filed before this court regarding a threat to his life and the fear of mob lynching is vindicated,” the application read. Choksi also sent some audio and video CDs claiming that they contained the cited footage from the news channel debate.
