Mumbai: A special court recently directed the issuance of non-bailable warrants against fugitive businessman Mehul Choksi and his wife Priti Choksi in connection with a prosecution initiated by the Assistant Registrar of Companies against Gitanjali Jewellery Retail Ltd and its key executives. The judge ordered that the fresh warrants be submitted through Ministry of External Affairs to track down the couple residing abroad, while also ordering a separate non-bailable warrant through Ministry of Home Affairs to address an administrative omission by court staff.The directions were issued during a court hearing where special public prosecutor Sandeep Singh submitted that under a previous court order passed on Aug 12, 2026, the non-bailable warrant issued against Choksi had been kept in abeyance only until the next date of hearing. As that period had expired, the prosecution filed an application seeking non-bailable warrants against both Choksi and his wife through Ministry of External Affairs.The court proceedings also brought to light that an earlier warrant had not been issued against Choksi’s wife due to an omission by the second clerk of the court. Rectifying the administrative lapse, the court ordered, “Issue NBW against accused number 7, through Home Department.” The court adjourned the matter to Nov 3, 2026, for the submission of the execution report regarding the warrants issued against Choksi and his wife. The regulatory probe traces its origins to 2014, when the CBI shared intelligence with Central Economic Intelligence Bureau regarding promotional schemes floated by various jewellery firms. Acting on these inputs, the Registrar of Companies (ROC) initiated scrutiny into the operations of Gitanjali Jewellery Retail. On Oct 28, 2014, corporate regulators issued a formal notice to the company, seeking comprehensive accounts of funds collected from retail customers under its promotional schemes, ‘Swarna Mangal’ and ‘Shagun’.
