PNB Fraud Case: Rahul Gandhi Takes a Dig at PM Narendra Modi, Says ‘Ek Nirav Modi Hai, Dusra Modi Nirav Hai’

New Delhi, March 6: Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday took a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for being quiet on the multi-crore Punjab National Bank financial scam saying "Ek Nirav Modi h

New Delhi, March 6: Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday took a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for being quiet on the multi-crore Punjab National Bank financial scam saying “Ek Nirav Modi hai, dusra Modi nirav hai”. The case related to the over Rs 12,700 crore PNB fraud by diamond jeweller Nirav Modi and his uncle Mehul Choksi, owner of Gitanjali gems.

The Congress was seen protesting against the PNB scam near Mahatma Gandhi statue in Parliament today. The party even raised the issue inside Parliament during the second half of Budget Session leading to repeated adjournments. “Sansad mei aaj ek zordar naara sunayi pad raha hai — Nirav Modi, Modi nirav. Ek Nirav Modi Hai, dursa Modi nirav hai. (A slogan was being heard in Parliament — Nirav Modi, Modi nirav. One is Nirav Modi, second is Modi nirav (quiet).” (Also read: ICICI’s Chanda Kochhar, Axis Bank’s Shikha Sharma Summoned by SFIO)

संसद में आज एक ज़ोरदार नारा सुनाई पड़ रहा है: नीरव मोदी, मोदी नीरव

एक नीरव मोदी है, दूसरा मोदी नीरव है!#ModiRobsIndia pic.twitter.com/34TFDAgh76

— Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) March 6, 2018

Delhi: Congress MPs staged protest near Mahatma Gandhi statue in Parliament over #PNBScam; party president Rahul Gandhi also present pic.twitter.com/FKhzx2Hlqc

— ANI (@ANI) March 6, 2018

On March 3, a special court issued non-bailable warrants (NBWs) against Nirav Modi and Choksi in the alleged Rs 12,700 crore Punjab National Bank scam. (Also read: My Fate Was Already Decided in PNB Fraud Case, Says Nirav Modi)

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) had earlier issued summons to the duo asking them to appear before the central agency. However, Modi, his family, and Choksi left the country in early January, much before the Central Bureau of Investigation received a complaint from the PNB. They are being investigated by multiple probe agencies following a complaint by the PNB that they allegedly cheated the nationalised bank to the tune of over Rs 12,000 crore, with the purported involvement of a few employees of the bank.  (Also read: Nirav Modi’s CA Was Aware of Unsecured Loans Amounting Rs 5,100 Cr, Alleges CBI)

The investigation related to Rs 12,636 crore scam pertaining to fraudulent issuance of Letters of Undertakings (LoUs) and Letters of Credit (LCs) from Brady House branch of PNB in Mumbai in favour of his and his uncle Mehul Choksi’s companies, the CBI had said.

The quantum of the alleged fraud perpetrated in the bank by billionaire jewellers Modi and Choksi stands close to US $2 billion after the teams of the CBI and PNB found fresh LoUs and LCs worth Rs 1,251 crore related to Choksi’s Gitanjali group of companies.

The LoU is a guarantee which is given by an issuing bank to Indian banks having branches abroad to grant a short-term credit to the applicant. In case of default, the bank issuing the LoU has to pay the liability to credit giving bank along with accruing interest.

It is alleged that LoUs and LCs worth close to US $2 billion were issued to the companies of uncle-nephew duo of Choksi and Modi from the Brady Road branch of the bank through SWIFT (Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication) messages.

These messages were allegedly not entered in the banking software of the PNB to bypass surveillance.

With inputs from Agencies