ED’S dossier on Choksi reveals ‘tricks of trade’

NEW DELHI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has accused fugitive diamond trader Mehul Choksi of indulging in circular trading through dummy companies, so-called “air to air” exports and split consignments, and inflating stock value to perpetrate, along with his nephew Nirav Modi, a fraud on the stateowned Punjab National Bank .

ED investigators who asked not to be identified, highlighted these findings from their investigation file after Choksi, in a Sunday interview to HT, accused the agency of reducing his brand value to zero. He also claimed that since ED has attached all his properties, he has no money to pay back PNB. “They (the PNB) can sell off my assets and pay whoever has to be paid. They should take it from the ED, I am in no position to return any money,” Choksi told HT. On Tuesday, Choksi repeated the same comments in a TV interview. The ED’S investigation document, which has been seen by HT, arrives at the same conclusion as the Central Board of Investigation’s (CBI) investigation: that Choksi obtained letters of undertaking and credit from PNB to settle previous obligations. Money generated through letters of undertaking and credit was partly remitted back to Choksi’s Gitanjali group companies in the guise of export-import transactions for settling earlier liabilities, it adds.

“The remittance emanated from the dummy firms in Hong Kong on account of purchases/export transactions were transferred to different banks of Mehul Choksi/ Gitanjali Group of Companies operating in India. Part of the funds were routed to overseas companies controlled by Mehul Choksi located in USA, UAE, UK, Hong Kong and Thailand in the guise of export-import transactions,” states documents which is part of the formal charges filed against Choksi.