PNB head Sunil Mehta appears before SFIO in Mumbai

Bank’s CEO was summoned to record his statement in the fraud involving Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi

Punjab National Bank’s (PNB) managing director and CEO Sunil Mehta appeared before the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) in Mumbai on Wednesday morning to record his statement in connection with investigations into the Rs12,600 crore bank fraud involving Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi.

PNB’s MD and CEO Sunil Mehta appeared before the Mumbai unit of the Serious Fraud Investigation Office on Wednesday. (Kunal Patil/HT Photo)

Responding to the summons issued by the SFIO, which is under the ministry of corporate affairs, Mehta showed up at the agency’s office in Fort at 10.30am.

On Tuesday, the SFIO had summoned Chanda Kochhar, CEO of ICICI bank, and Shikha Sharma, managing director of Axis Bank, among others as part of the investigation into 31 private and state-run banks that in a consortium gave working capital loans worth Rs5,280 crore to Choksi-controlled Gitanjali Gems from 2009.

Kochhar and Sharma have sought time to appear before the SFIO, but the statements of senior executives from their banks, and other bank officials, have been recorded.

This probe is separate from the Rs12,600 crore PNB fraud investigation.

As per reports, at Rs600 crore, ICICI Bank leads among the 31 banks that have given loans and guarantees to firms promoted by Choksi.