PNB Scam: Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman targets Congress,Rahul Gandhi

Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, countering the Congress, said the government is taking action against Nirav Modi.

The Defence Minister alleged that Congress President Rahul Gandhi attended a promotional event hosted by Nirav Modi earlier.

"Nirav Modi's company had taken a property on rent in Mumbai from a company whose directors are wife & son of Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi. Both companies have done financial transactions. Despite the clear links, Congress has the audacity to make allegations against BJP," Nirmala said while addressing a press conference.

Alleging that Rahul Gandhi was present in the promotional event hosted by Nirav Modi, she said: " On 13 Sept 2013, Rahul Gandhi attends a promotion event of Gitanjali Gems. On 15 Sept 2013, a proposal to give loans of Rs. 1,550 crore to this jewellery group is put up in Allahabad Bank board meeting. One director opposes it. He is asked to resign. Join the dots."

The Congress targeted the BJP over Prime Minister Narendra Modi's silence so far in the Nirav Modi episode.

Attacking the BJP, the Congress tweeted: " One minister speaks for another's ministry. The minister, who is supposed to speak, doesn't. The PM hasn't spoken yet. When will the FM and the PM come clean on the Nirav Modi Scam? #ChhotaModi."

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has recently stated that most of the fraud Letters of Understandings (LoUs) were issued or renewed by diamond czar Nirav Modi and his kin, who are alleged to have been involved in the country's biggest bank scam, in the year 2017-2018, media reports said.

Along with Modi, his maternal uncle Mehul Choksi is also involved in the Punjab National Bank (PNB) scam and fraudulent LoUs.

A fresh FIR filed by the CBI against Choksi claimed that Modi's kin along with three companies had defrauded PNB of money worth Rs. 4886.72 crore by issuing 143 LoUs in the year 2017-2018 through the bank.

The CBI's statement gave a new turning point to the tussle between the ruling BJP and the Opposition Congress who have locked their horns in blaming each other for the bank scam, unfolded days ago.

Meanwhile, the government on Friday announced that the passport of the fugitive billionaire Nirav Modi, the prime accused in the Rs. 11,292-crore Punjab National Bank fraud case, and his business partner Mehul Choksi have  been cancelled for four weeks.

“On the advice of the Enforcement Directorate, the passport issuing authority in the Ministry of External Affairs has suspended the validity of passports of Mr. Nirav Deepak Modi and Mr. Mehul Chinubhai Choksi with immediate effect for a period of four weeks u/s 10(A) of the Passports Act 1967,” the Ministry of External Affairs said in a press release.

Modi, who is in the centre of a huge storm, reportedly left the country in January, much before the scam came to light.

According to media reports, he is now in New York.

Meanwhile, Interpol has issued diffusion notice against Modi, his wife Ami, brother Nishal and partner Choksi.

The diffusion notice is a request for cooperation or alert mechanism, less formal than an actual notice but is also used to request the arrest or location of an individual or additional information in relation to a police investigation.

On Feb 14, the CBI received complaints from PNB, which detected a Rs 11,292 crore fraud involving Modi.

ED started raiding Nirav Modi’s home, offices in Mumbai, Delhi and Surat on Thursday.

According to reports, Punjab National Bank has  suspended eight more officials. The number of suspended employees now stands at 18, which also includes General Manager level officers. Internal investigation of the bank is still underway.