Author: Adv. Rubby Kalpesh Rajput, Asmita College Of Law
INTRODUCTION
Nirav Modi is a fugitive Indian businessman who was in the business of luxury diamond jewellery. He’s the author of Nirav Modi chain of diamond jewellery retail stores. Born in a blood of diamond merchandisers in Palanpur, Gujarat on 27th February, 1971, Nirav Deepak Modi shifted to Antwerp, Belgium soon latterly. Modi took conceded to the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania but latterly ceased out of the same. At the time of 19, Modi and his father Deepak Modi returned ago to India and shifted to Mumbai to join his uncle Mehul Choksi and his Gitanjali Group, which was a retail jewellery company with roughly 4000 stores in India. latterly, Modi married Ami Choksi, the sire of diamond businessman Amukuraj Choksi, whom he’d met during his Wharton School days.
Though Nirav Modi will go down in history as a scamster, he was without any mistrustfulness, a prosperous and visionary businessman. The antedating accomplishments and accolades swear to his excellent business chops
• In 2010, Modi came the first jeweller applauding from India to be punctuated on the recognized covers of Christie’s and Sotheby’s canons.
• In November 2010, at a Christie’s trade in Hong Kong, the Golconda Lotus Necklace, held by Nirav Modi, featuring a delicate12.29 carat Golconda diamond, pink diamonds and exclusive Aindra slash diamonds, was vended for a startling freight.
• latterly in 2012, the ‘ Riviere of Perfection ’, a birthstone collection which was an native portion of the Nirav Modi Jewellery collection and which punctuated 36 impeccable undyed diamonds and counted a aggregate of88.88 carats was vended again at Sotheby’s trade in Hong Kong.
• In 2013, in the prestigious Forbes list, Nirav Modi got punctuated in the Forbes list of Indian Billionaires.
• Nirav Modi also held the Patents for Jasmine slash diamond, United States Design Patent USD763118S1, United States Design Patent US D 738,777 A, Jewellery Design.
Nirav Modi’s portion in PNB fiddle
Modi is being shoveled in the$ 2 billion Punjab National Bank( PNB) fraud case. He was charged by the Indian government for lawless conspiracy, lawless breach of trust, chicaning, putrefaction, commercial laundering, fraud, embezzlement and breach of deal in August 2018 in the PNB fiddle case.
Nirav Modi in hot water after PNB fiddle unfolds
In 2018, Nirav Modi applied for ruin security in Manhattan, New York. In May 2018, Central Bureau of Investigation( CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate( ED) registered FIRs against him. It’s spoke that Modi fled the country before lawless charges were filed against him. In June 2018, it was reported that Modi was seeking political sanctum in Britain. In March 2019, Modi was enchanted in intermediary London by UK authorities. In 2019, Swiss authorities set a aggregate of$ 6 million in Modi’s Swiss bank accounts. He was also being sued by the country of California in the US for defrauding Los AngelesentrepreneurPaulAlfonso.The PNB fiddlE is spoke to be the biggest fraud case in India’s banking history and is worth over Rs 14,000 crore. Till now, government authorities in India have attached several thousand crores worth of groupings. Modi’s brand and fortune, both have collapsed. He ranked 57th in the Forbes list of billionaires in 2017. His current substance is estimated to be lesser than$ 100 million.
How the Nirav Modi swindle unfolded and evolved is rehearsed below in the shape of the following timeline Dates Important events of the Nirav Modi fiddle
29th January, 2018 Punjab National Bank( PNB) complained to the police authorities that two of its staff ingredients in conspiracy with Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi had chicaned the bank for around two billion bones.
5th February, 2018 The PNB grassed SEBI that it had started its own internal inquiry into the fiddle and the CBI after convening a gathering, took over the inquiry process.
14th February, 2018 PNB declared a fraud ofRs. 11,400 crores of commercial and also, foreign branches of Indian overseas banks also declared that plutocrat was being credited to Nirav Modi and his enterprises because of the unapproved ways of banking by PNB staff in the shape of agreeing relaxed and unauthorised Letters of Endeavors( LoUs).
16th February, 2018 After the complaint was filed against Mehul Choksi, CBI shoveled around 20 merchandising stores of Choksi’s Gitanjali Group. PNB published a positive statement about hoping for the reclamation of loss within a period of six months. The credence exposure to the Nirav Modi fraud of nonidentical banks came forth from the trouble exposure data. They’re as Follows Union Bank of India –$ 300 million( approx) State Bank of India –$ 212 million( approx) UCO Bank –$ 412 million( approx) Allahabad Bank –$ 367 million( approx) The Reserve Bank of India blazoned the demand of tight superintendent and non supervisory conduct.
17th February, 2018 CBI issued arrest concurrences against the two loose employees of PNB and administrators of Nirav Modi’s group who were native to the fiddle . The Enforcement Directorate( ED) seized diamonds, gold, and jewellery details from Nirav Modi’s home, shops and services worth Rs.56.74 billion( approx).
20th February, 2018 The share prices of PNB collapsed into a dive because of the immense panic and volatility convinced by the fiddle and lost thousands of crores in request capitalization. The also Finance Minister Late Arun Jaitley and RBI issued statements about the elision of relating of SWIFT with the CBS( Core Banking System). Diamond Napoleon Nirav Modi and his attorneys vehemently contradicted any crimes or offences. But, ED after disquisition set up that Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi had eviscerated the finances immorally through closely 100 pod companies. Three further officers of Nirav Modi Group were taken into trust by CBI for interrogation and disquisition.
21st February, 2018 CBI started taking into trust numerous loose officers who were involved in the fiddle involving the general manager of PNB,Mr. Rajesh Jindal who served for numerous moments in the Mumbai Branch where the fiddle allegedly took position.
23rd February, 2018 Institute of Chartered Accountants of India( ICAI) appointed independent adjudicators to probe the PNBscam.RBI declared stricter control in supervising and regulating the SWIFT system.
27th February, 2018 Bankruptcy proceedings were filed by Nirav Modi’s establishment Firestar Diamond International in the United States.
28th February, 2018M.K.Sharma, a former adjudicator was arrested by CBI for manipulating the inspection system in the PNB fiddle.
1st March, 2018 Internal Adjudicator of PNB Bishnubrata Mishra was arrested by CBI for his part in the fiddle.
6th March, 2018 CBI took into guardianship Vipul Chitalia, Vice President of Banking Operations of Gitanjali group.
2nd June, 2018 Interpol issued a Red Corner Notice against Nirav Modi for plutocrat laundering and fraud.
26th June, 2018 A Mumbai Court issued an order against Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi to appear before the Court or be declared as exiles as per the vittles of the Prevention of plutocrat Laundering Act( PMLA), 2002.
3rd August, 2018 The Indian government requested the UK government for the repatriation of fugitive billionaire Nirav Modi back to India to face trial.
18th March, 2019 The Westminster Court in London issued an arrest leave against fugitive diamantaire Nirav Modi after the Indian government’s request was properly encouraged to the Court by the UK Home Office.
20th March, 2019 Nirav Modi was arrested in London after the Westminster Court issued an arrest leave against the fugitive billionaire and he was transferred to Her Majesty’s Captivity( HMP) Wandsworth.
29th March, 2019 The bail operation by Nirav Modi was rejected by the Westminster Court.
25th February, 2021 The UK’s Westminster Adjudicators ’ Court, presided by District Judge Sam Goozeeruled Nirav Modi can be extradited to India to face charges of fraud and plutocrat laundering.
Conclusion
When the Nirav Modi fiddle hit the captions in the spring of 2018, the miseries of the common man were inescapably visible in the form of long lines and rueful crowds standing in front of the gates of their bank branches. The Nirav Modi fiddle struck as the biggest earthquake in India’s banking history and in its earthquake followed the farther loss of thousands of crores of rupees of investors ’ wealth when the stock request took a dive and crashed. It’s true that after this fiddle, numerous reforms were introduced in the form of the Expatriate profitable malefactors Act( 2018), integration of SWIFT with CBS( Core Banking System), stricter regulations etc. but an effective interference that will scarify the unborn Nirav Modis from playing with India’s frugality is yet to see the daylight. Until further strict laws and regulations are introduced along with mechanisms to insure the full compliance of similar security regulations, the imminence of greedy fraudsters in the banking sector will remain long hauls down from getting a thing of the history.
FAQS
1. Who’s Nirav Modi?
Nirav Modi is a fugitive Indian businessman who was in the business of luxury diamond jewellery. He’s the author of Nirav Modi chain of diamond jewellery retail stores.
2. Nirav Modi’s part in PNB fiddle?
Modi is being delved in the$ 2 billion Punjab National Bank( PNB) fraud case. He was charged by the Indian government for felonious conspiracy, felonious breach of trust, cheating, corruption, plutocrat laundering, fraud, embezzlement and breach of contract in August 2018 in the PNB fiddle case.
3.What was the PNB fiddle?
The case relates to fake letters of undertaking( LoUs) issued by PNB bank at its Brady House branch in Fort, Mumbai. The fiddle was allegedly organised by Nirav Modi, his woman Ami Modi, family Nishal Modi, and Uncle Mehul Choksi who also fled the country in 2018. They were helped by PNB bank workers and directors in Nirav Modi’s establishment. The LoUs were opened in favour of branches of Indian banks for the Date 2024-07-21 Words 963 Characters 5994 import of plums for a period of one time, for which Reserve Bank of India guidelines lay out a total time period of 90 days from the date of payload. This guideline was ignored by overseas branches of Indian banks. They failed to partake any document/ information with PNB, which was made available to them by the enterprises at the time of serving credit from them. Nirav Modi got his first fraudulent guarantee from PNB on March 10, 2011 and managed to get 1,212 further similar guarantees over the coming 74 months. PNB workers misused the SWIFT network to transmit dispatches to Allahabad Bank and Axis Bank on fund demand. While all this was done using SWIFT watchwords, the deals were noway recorded in the bank’s core system — thereby keeping the PNB operation in the dark for times.
4.How did the PNB fiddle unfold?
PNB alleges associates of three enterprises — Diamond R US, M/ s Solar Exports and M/ s Astral Diamonds —approached the bank to make payment to its overseas suppliers. The bank demanded that it’ll need at least a 100 per cent periphery for issuing LoUs. still, the establishment said they’ve entered LoUs in the history without any similar guarantees.Branch records showed no similar request was granted to the enterprises. This made the bank suspect there could be a fraud which led to them digging further into the sale history. The bank filed a complaint with the CBI on January 29, 2018 against Nirav Modi, Ami Modi, Nishal Modi and Mehul Choksi along with two PNB workers for cheating and causing unlawful loss.
5.Where is Nirav Modi presently?
A UK court, on February 25, 2021, allowed the repatriation of Modi to India. UK’s Home Secretary Priti Patel inked the repatriation order, clearing the path for his repatriation. Modi has appealed the court order professing he wo n’t admit a fair trial in India. presently, Modi is in jail at the Wandsworth Prison in south- west London.
