Mehul Choksi, the prominent diamond trader, has been arrested by Belgian police, according to a report. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) officials confirmed that Belgian police arrested Mehul Choksi on Saturday, following India's request. Mehul is accused in the Rs. 13,500 crore Punjab National Bank (PNB) fraud case, and India had requested his extradition. Consequently, it is expected that he will be handed over to India soon.

Mehul Choksi, who fled the country after committing the PNB fraud, has been a subject of intense efforts by Indian investigation agencies to bring him back. Recently, the Belgian government confirmed that Choksi was in Belgium. Following the CBI's request, Belgian authorities arrested him. It is also reported that the police referred to the two open-end arrest warrants issued by the Mumbai court when arresting Choksi.

Before this, it was revealed by international media that Mehul Choksi, a key figure in the PNB scam, was residing in Antwerp with his Belgian wife, Preeti. He had obtained a residency card there. Choksi, who had relocated from Antigua and Barbuda to Belgium for medical treatment, also holds Belgian citizenship. In January 2018, just a few weeks before the PNB scam was uncovered, Choksi and his nephew Nirav Modi fled the country. It was later revealed that he obtained citizenship in Antigua two months before the scam was exposed. The Indian government is making efforts to bring Nirav Modi, another accused in the case, from London.