Disgraced billionaire jeweller Nirav Modi, a key accused in India’s biggest-ever bank fraud of 1.8 billion U.S. dollars, has reportedly given a “concrete proposal” to state-owned Punjab National Bank to refund the money.
In a letter to the bank, Modi has offered jewellery, current account deposits and immoveable properties to cover his liabilities with the bank, the Hindustan Times newspaper reported Thursday, quoting a source.
The proposal came even as Indian investigators have launched a major crackdown on Modi and firms owned by him and his uncle and business partner Mehul Choksi for their involvement in the scam that has rocked the country.
Indian authorities have seized 10,000 luxury watches and nine luxury cars on Feb. 24, apart from freezing his personal shares and mutual funds.
Indian investigators have also arrested 13 people till date, including top bank officials in the case, though they have not yet charged Modi for the crime.
Even the bank’s chief internal auditor was taken into custody Wednesday.
Modi is said to have defrauded Punjab National Bank, India’s second largest state-run bank, of 1.8 billion dollars, though he has said that he owed the bank only 775 million U.S. dollars, in a letter shot to the bank’s management.
The celebrity jeweller is said to have fled the country and was reportedly last seen in New York after his appearance at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, as a part of an Indian delegation. (Xinhua/NAN)