Amid reports that Antigua and Barbuda has cancelled the citizenship of Mehul Choksi, the Chief of Staff to Prime Minister Gaston Browne said the fugitive diamantaire had taken legal recourse and the matter would take about seven years to be resolved.

Responding to the question on revocation of Choksi's citizenship, Lionel Hurst told India Today, "Not true. Antigua and Barbuda has attempted to withdraw or revoke the citizenship of Mehul Choksi. However, he has entered a lawsuit in the High Court of Antigua and Barbuda. This matter will take about seven years to be resolved. With enough money to pursue these legal challenges, 2027 is the earliest for a final resolution."

Hurst said that even if Choksi loses the appeal, which is likely, he could move the Court of Appeals and then the Privy Council in London.

"It is not case that at this time he (Mehul Choksi) could be returned to India because he has all the rights and privileges of a citizen of Antigua and Barbuda. Thus, it would be many years before he is sent back," Hurst said.

Choksi, along with his nephew Nirav Modi, is accused of allegedly perpetrating a Rs 13,500-crore fraud through Letters of Understanding (LoUs) of Punjab National Bank (PNB). Choksi was granted Antigua and Barbuda citizenship under the Caribbean nation's Citizenship by Investment Programme (CIP) in November 2017.

Last month, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) provisionally attached assets worth Rs 14.45 crore of Gitanjali Group and Mehul Choksi. Earlier, the agency had attached properties worth over Rs 2,550 crore of Choksi in connection with the bank fraud case.

The development comes days after a UK court ruled in favour of extradition of Nirav Modi. The UK judge ruled that Nirav Modi had a case to answer in the Indian courts and there was no evidence to suggest he would not receive a fair trial in India.