CBI arrests 4 officials of NiMo, Choksi's cos

The CBI on Sunday made four arrests in connection with the alleged Rs 12,636crore fraud at Punjab National Bank perpetrated by billionaire jewellers Nirav Modi and his uncle Mehul Choksi, officials said.

The agency has arrested two employees and an auditor of the Nirav Modi group of companies, while a director of the Gitanjali group of companies owned by Choksi has also been taken into custody, they said.

Manish K Bosamiya, the then AGM (operations) of Firestarter International Ltd owned by Nirav Modi, and then Finance Manager Miten Anil Pandya were arrested for their alleged role in the preparation of applications for fraudulent Letters of Undertakings submitted to Punjab National Bank, they said.

Auditor Sanjay Rambhia, partner in the Chartered Accountancy firm Sampat and Mehta, Mumbai, has also been arrested in connection with the ongoing investigation, the officials said.

The CBI has also arrested the then Director of Mehul Choksi's company Gili India, Aniyath Shiv Raman Nair, in connection with the case.

It was alleged that besides being one of the directors of the Gitanjali group of companies, he was the authorized signatory for the applications submitted to PNB for issuance of purported LOUs and Foreign Letters of Credit (FLCs).

It is alleged that Choksi and Modi got issued LoUs and FLCs of Rs 12,636 crore in favour of foreign branches of Indian banks based on fraudulent claims.