Who is Monika Kapoor, alleged economic offender caught by CBI in the US?

Monika Kapoor, who had been on the run from Indian authorities for more than 25 years, was recently apprehended in the United States by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The alleged economic offender fled to the US in 1999 following the fraud involving her two brothers.

They were accused of forging documents to allegedly obtain licenses from the Centre to import raw materials duty-free for their jewellery business. Adding to the import-export case opened in 2002, the CBI concluded the investigation by filing the chargesheet in March 2004 against Monika Kapoor, Rajan Khanna, and Rajeev Khanna.

According to agencies that cited officials, Kapoor was taken into custody, and the CBI team, along with Kapoor, are on their way to India aboard an American Airlines flight. Since this is an active investigation, more information was not disclosed.

Kapoor’s alleged fraud is said to have caused a loss of over $679,000 (then, ₹1.44 crore) to the Indian exchequer. In today’s exchange rate (without factoring in inflation), it is a little over ₹5.8 crore.

While Rajan and Rajeev Khanna were convicted in a Delhi court in December 2017, “accused Monika Kapoor did not join investigation and trial, she was declared proclaimed offender”, stated the CBI.

Back in 2010, India approached the US to seek the extradition of Kapoor under the treaty between the two nations.

Following this, the District Court for the Eastern District of New York cleared her for extradition. Then, the secretary of state issued a surrender warrant, which effectively rejected her claims that she would likely be tortured if returned to India. Kapoor had then claimed that her extradition would violate the UN Convention Against Torture under the Foreign Affairs Reform and Restructuring Act of 1998 (FARRA).

“Fugitive Monika Kapoor… in conspiracy with her brothers namely Rajan Khanna and Rajiv Khanna forged export documents viz. shipping bills, invoices and bank certificates of export and realisation during the year 1998 and obtained replenishment licenses for import of duty-free gold worth ₹2.36 crore… furtherance of the criminal conspiracy, they sold the said replenishment licenses to Deep Exports, Ahmedabad on premium. Deep Exports, Ahmedabad utilised the said licenses and imported duty free gold which caused loss to the government exchequer to the extent of ₹1.44 crore during the year 1998,” the central investigation agency said in a statement.

“The CBI team is returning to India with the fugitive. Monika [Kapoor] is being produced before the concerned court, and she will now face the trial,” the bureau added.

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