In fresh action against beleaguered jeweller Nirav Modi, the Enforcement Directorate has attached 21 properties, including a penthouse and a farmhouse belonging to him and his group. The agency said it has issued a provisional order for attachment of the assets, under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), and seized a £8.12 million valued penthouse and a flat worth £1.55 million in the sea-facing Samudra Mahal apartments in Mumbai.
It said, “21 immovable properties of Nirav Modi and companies controlled by him, with a market value of £52.34 million, have been provisionally attached. These include 6 residential properties, ten office premises, 2 flats in Pune, a solar power plant, a farmhouse in Alibaug and 135 acres of land in Karjat in Ahmednagar district.” The agency had earlier seized gems, diamonds, jewellery, shares, bank deposits, and costly cars in the case since it registered a criminal case under PMLA, however, this is the first major action to seize immovable assets.
Samudra Mahal properties and two other flats in Pune's Hadapsar area are in the name of Modi and his wife Ami, and assets like the pricey Kalaghoda and Opera House area in the Maharashtra capital are in the name of Modi's diamond firm- Firestarter Diamond International Private Limited. Also attached is a farmhouse and adjoining land, worth over £4.27 million in the beach-side Alibaug of the Nirav Modi Trust. Similarly, a 53-acre solar power plant valued at £7 million in the Karjat area of Ahmednagar district of the state have also been brought under the same action.
Officials claimed that with the latest seizure, the total assets seized by the ED in this case are now over £639.3 million. The central agency has also summoned Modi, Ami, and Modi's uncle and Gitanjali Gems promoter Mehul Choksi for questioning in the case on February 26.
