India can seek extradition of fugitive billionaire Mehul Choksi without an Interpol Red Corner Notice as it is not a mandatory requirement for the process, the CBI has told the Ministry of External Affairs.

In a communication to the ministry earlier this month, the agency said the purpose of a Red Corner Notice (RCN) is to locate an absconding accused which has already been achieved in Choksi's case after confirmation from Antigua that he is their citizen, officials said. They also said that having an RCN is of little value now as Antigua has granted him citizenship and Choksi is now an Antiguan passport holder. The agency has communicated to the ministry that it has already written to its counterpart agency in Antigua for the provisional arrest of Choksi, who is the alleged mastermind of the over 2 billion USD bank fraud in the Punjab National Bank.