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CBI arrests PNB GM, seals Nirav Modi's Alibaug farmhouse
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SME Times News Bureau | 21 Feb, 2018
The CBI on Wednesday said it has
arrested a General Manager-rank officer of the Punjab National Bank
(PNB) in connection with the Rs 11,300 crore fraud and sealed diamond
merchant Nirav Modi's Alibaug farmhouse in Maharashtra.
Rajesh
Jindal, who was holding the charge of Mumbai-based PNB's Brady House
branch between August 2009 and May 2011, was arrested on Tuesday night
after daylong questioning in Mumbai.
The Central Bureau of
Investigation (CBI) officials said the fraud perpetrated by the issuance
of Letters of Understanding (LoUs) and Foreign Letters of Credit (FLCs)
by PNB for sanction of loans to diamantire Nirav Modi and his uncle
Mehul Choksi's group of firms took place during Jindal's tenure.
Jindal,
presently posted as GM (Credit) at PNB's Head Office in New Delhi, was
heading the second largest branch of the PNB when the practice of
issuing the LoUs without sanctioned limits began.
Jindal is the
12th accused to be arrested in the case so far. He was on Wednesday
presented in a special CBI court in Mumbai which sent him to the
agency's custody till March 5, an official said.
The agency also
sealed Nirav Modi's Alibaug farmhouse spread over 1.5 acres near the
Mumbai seashore, a day after a search by the CBI there.
The
Enforcement Directorate (ED), which is also probing the PNB fraud case
separately, on Wednesday carried out searches at 17 locations in Mumbai.
It carried out searches at four firms suspected to be shell companies.
Officials
connected to the case said the businessman bought the farmhouse in 2004
for Rs 32 crore in his name. "The farmhouse has a palatial bungalow
'Rouapanya' spread over 12,000 square feet. It has a swimming pool,
library, gym and other luxuries."
The CBI's move was part of its
multiple raids at residential and office premises of the accused ever
since it filed two FIRs on February 14-15 against Nirav Modi and the
Gitanjali group of firms respectively. The agency officials
continued to question an Executive Director and General Manager level
officials of the Brady House branch along with Modi's staff and
associates, including Saurabh Sharma, who is President of the Foreign
Finance Division of Firestar International Pvt Ltd, and Subhash Parab,
Finance Executive.
Beside, the agency also examined
executive-level officials of Mehul Choksi's Gitanjali group -- Gitanjali
Gems Ltd, Gili India Ltd and Nakshatra Brands Ltd.
Earlier on
Tuesday, the agency had arrested three employees of Nirav Modi and two
of his uncle Mehul Choksi's Gitanjali Gems and Nakshatra firms.
Nirav
Modi's Firestar International firm's President Vipul Ambani, its Senior
Executive Arjun Patil, and Executive Assistant and authorised signatory
of the diamond merchant's three accused firms, Kavita Mankikar, were
arrested on Tuesday.
Chief Financial Officer of Gitanjali group, Kapil Khandelwal, and its Manager Niten Shahi were also held on Tuesday.
Vipul is the son of late Dhirubhai Ambani's younger brother Natubhai Ambani.
Those arrested on Tuesday were presented in a CBI court on Wednesday and sent in the agency's custody till March 3.
On
Tuesday, the ED officials said over 120 shell companies were allegedly
linked to Nirav Modi and Choksi, who along with their respective family
members are said to have left the country in early January. The
ED is investigating 79 shell companies owned by the Gitanjali chief and
41 owned by Nirav Modi in India and examining if the money taken from
banks was diverted to these shell companies.
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