PNB Scam: IT dept attaches seven more properties of Gitanjali Group

The Income Tax department on Monday attached seven more properties of the Gitanjali Group, in connection with Punjab National Bank (PNB) fraud case, sources have revealed.

Within these seven properties, four properties are registered in the name of Gitanjali Gems, while two belong to Mehul Choksi, the Managing Director of Gitanjali Gems and also the maternal uncle of Nirav Modi.

Further, one property registered is in Gili India's name. All of these attached properties are in Mumbai.

The IT Department on February 17 attached nine accounts of Gitanjali group.

On February 16, three companies of billionaire jeweller Nirav Modi's relative Mehul Choksi's were named in the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) FIR.

Gitanjali Gems, Gili India and Nakshatra Brand Ltd. were named.

In this case the alleged loss to PNB is estimated at Rs. 4886.72 crores.

For the unversed, Punjab National Bank detected a 1.77 billion dollars scam, in which jeweler Nirav Modi acquired fraudulent letters of undertaking from one of its branches for overseas credit from other Indian lenders.

The scam started in 2011 and was detected in the third week of January this year, after which the PNB officials reported it to the concerned agencies.

Meanwhile, the PNB filed a second complaint with the CBI on February 13.

The CBI had received the complaint from PNB on January 28 and a case was registered in the case on January 31.