Hussain, Shergil paintings seized from Nirav Modi residence

A fresh seizure of antique jewellery, costly watches and paintings of Amrita Sher-Gil and M F Hussain worth Rs 26 crore has been made by the ED from the sea-facing Mumbai apartment of diamantaire Nirav Modi in connection with the over Rs 12,000 crore PNB fraud case. ANI picture

The Enforcement Directorate on Saturday said, investigators have made fresh seizures of antique jewellery, costly watches and paintings of Amrita Sher-Gil and M F Hussain worth Rs 26.40 crore from the Mumbai apartment of diamantaire Nirav Modi.

The searches were part of investigations into the cases filed by the CBI and ED against Modi and his relatives in connection with a Rs 12,967.84 crore fraud in Punjab National Bank.

With this, the total attachment and seizures have risen to Rs 7,664 crore. The searches were conducted by ED official along with CBI investigators at Modi's sea-facing apartment Samudra Mahal in Mumbai on March 22.

The ED said antique jewellery worth Rs 15 crore, watches worth Rs 1.40 crore and paintings of M F Hussain, K K Hebbar and Amrita Sher-Gil worth Rs 10 crore were recovered. A lone diamond ring is valued at Rs 10 crore, officials claimed.

Modi, his wife Ami, brother Nishal and uncle Mehul Choksi had left India in the first week of January, days before the CBI registered a case against them. Modi and Choksi, another prominent jeweller, were issued summons by both CBI and the ED but both have refused to return to India.

The government had earlier revoked their passports while a Mumbai special court has issued non-bailable warrants against them on the request of the ED.

So far, the ED has conducted a total of 251 country-wide searches in this case after it began the criminal probe against the accused in February.

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