PNB fraud: Whistleblower Hari Prasad deleted LinkedIn profile

As soon as the media tracked down Hari Prasad S V, the whistleblower in the Nirav Modi scam, the Bengaluru-based entrepreneur deleted his LinkedIn profile. “These are big fraudsters and that makes me worried,” he said.

In 2016, Prasad had written to the Prime Minister’s Office about being allegedly duped by Mehul Choksi, managing director, Gitanjali Gems and business partner of Nirav Modi, of Rs 130 million, after opening a retail story of the Gitanjali brand.

Drawing parallels with the Kingfisher and Sahara scams, he said had earlier knocked on the doors of the Bengaluru Police, the Enforcement Directorate and the Central Bureau of Investigation, but to no avail.

Prasad’s letter to the PMO was made public by the Congress. He, however, denies affiliation to any political party.

A 1984 agriculture science graduate from Andhra Pradesh Agriculture University, Bapatla, Prasad also has an MBA from the Indian Institute of Planning and Management in New Delhi. He belongs to a business family in Andhra Pradesh and has worked with a French company, before starting his own venture, Setex Group in 1993.

Setex Group was involved in trading activities in Hong Kong, China, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, and Indonesia. Prasad, who has done a one-year course in international business from the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade, said after spending nearly 15 years abroad, he came back to India in 2004.

He wanted to take a break from business, and thus invested his savings in the stock market. However, when the markets crashed in 2008, he started looking for other avenues of income.

Prasad came across a newspaper advertisement in 2012 and invested in the retail jewellery business with Choksi, who promised him an assured monthly income of Rs 1.5 million for an investment of Rs 100 million. But eventually, Prasad lost all his money.

He says he will never again invest in gems and jewellery.

Prasad now runs MeVa Group in Bengaluru, which is involved in real estate development and retail ventures. He said he had a land bank, as he belonged to a family of landlords and agriculturists.

Besides business, he is also closely associated with Abhaya Foundation, a Hyderabad-based NGO that works for the uplift of the poor and women’s empowerment.

Prasad is an avid traveller who has been to 40 countries but his favourite destination is Rajasthan. He has a keen interest in history and art.