Share price of Gitanjali Gems hit lower circuit, PNB slips over 7%

Shares of Gitanjali Gems extended losses for the fourth consecutive session on Monday -- plunging almost 10 per cent to its lower circuit level at Rs 33.80 per scrip -- while those of Punjab National Bank (PNB) slipped over 7 per cent.

On a closing basis, PNB's scrips fell by Rs 9.25 per share, or 7.36 per cent, to Rs 116.40 on the BSE.

The stocks of jewellery company Geetanjali Gems continued the plunge a day after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted search operations in six franchise-based outlets located in four malls in Kolkata in connection with $1.8 billion banking fraud case.

Following the unravelling of the multi-crore PNB fraud, two senior officials of Gitanjali Gems -- Chandrakant Karkare and Pankhuri Warange -- resigned from the company, according to a regulatory filing with the stock exchanges on Monday.

Shares of PNB, too, declined after the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Monday sealed the Brady House Branch of the bank as multiple probe agencies continued with their probe into the multi-crore fraud.

The shares of the two companies started to decline following the country's second largest state-run bank PNB's declaration of unearthing a fraud of Rs 11,300 crore involving diamantaire Nirav Modi.

The fraud, which included money-laundering among others, concerned the Firestar Diamonds group in which the CBI booked Modi, his wife Ami, brother Nishal Modi and uncle and business partner Mehul Choksi -- who promotes the luxury jewellery brand Gitanjali Gems.

Last week, the ED launched a nationwide raid on the offices, showrooms and workshops of Nirav Modi. The CBI registered an FIR against the Gitanjali Group of companies based on a complaint registered by the PNB.

On Sunday, the ED conducted searches at over 45 more locations in 15 cities across India in connection with the scam.

--IANS

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