Gitanjali Gems shares fall 5% to hit 52-week low
Gitanjali Gems shares plunged 5% in morning trade after the CBI made four arrests in connection with the alleged Rs12,636-crore fraud at Punjab National Bank
New Delhi: Shares of Gitanjali Gems cracked another 5% in morning trade on the bourses on Monday after the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) made four arrests in connection with the alleged Rs12,636-crore fraud at Punjab National Bank (PNB) perpetrated by billionaire jewellers Nirav Modi and his uncle Mehul Choksi.
The agency has also 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. Reacting to the development, shares of Gitanjali Gems slumped 5%, to hit its 52-week low of Rs19.30.
This is the 13th straight session of fall for the stock. It has lost as much as 70% since 14 February, the day the PNB fraud came to light. On the NSE, the stock fell to a 52-week low of Rs19.25. The CBI has also arrested then director of Mehul Choksiās company Gili India, Aniyath Shiv Raman Nair, in connection with the case.
Besides being one of the directors of the Gitanjali group of companies, he was the authorised signatory for the applications submitted to PNB for issuance of purported letters of understanding (LoUs) and foreign letters of credit (FLCs), CBI said.
It is alleged that Choksi and Modi got issued LoUs and FLCs of Rs12,636 crore in favour of foreign branches of Indian banks based on fraudulent claims.
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