UK Court Orders Fugitive Businessman Mehul Choksi To Deposit Rs 8 Crore In Kidnapping Case

Last Updated:February 07, 2026, 19:43 IST

Mehul Choksi must deposit £677,000 as security for costs in his UK lawsuit against the Government of India and others over kidnapping claims.

Fugitive Indian businessman Mehul Choksi has suffered a setback in the UK after the High Court of Justice ordered him to deposit £677,000 (about ₹8 crore) as security for costs in a civil lawsuit linked to his kidnapping allegations.

The order was passed on Friday by the High Court’s King’s Bench Division in a case filed by Choksi against the Government of India and five individuals. Choksi has alleged that he was abducted from Antigua and Barbuda in 2021 and forcibly taken to Dominica as part of a conspiracy.

According to WIC News, the ruling followed applications by defendants Gurmit Singh, Gurjit Singh Bhandal, Leslie Farrow-Guy and Gurdip Bath, who sought an order requiring Choksi to provide security for costs. Such orders are meant to protect defendants from the risk of being unable to recover legal expenses if they succeed and the claimant fails to pay.

In its ruling, the court said it could not find a strong likelihood of Choksi succeeding in his claims. The judge observed that the case did not meet the threshold of having a high probability of success.

“Taking all the circumstances into account, in my judgment it would be just to make an order for security for costs," the court said, adding that this was not a rare case where there was a high probability of success either on preliminary issues or at trial.

The court further noted that there was a dispute of fact over whether the defendants were involved in kidnapping and assaulting Choksi, and said it could not proceed on the assumption that they were. It also found a “real risk" that any costs order against Choksi might not be enforceable, while adding that it was not satisfied the claim would be stifled by requiring the security deposit.

Choksi filed the lawsuit in May 2024 against the Indian government and UK residents Gurdip Bath, Barbara Jarabik, Gurmit Singh, Gurjit Singh Bhandal and Leslie Farrow-Guy, seeking damages for alleged physical and psychological injuries. The Indian government has consistently denied the allegations.

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