A special court in Mumbai on Thursday granted the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) permission to transfer a Rs 321.88 crore bank fraud case involving fugitive diamantaire Nirav Modi and others to a metropolitan magistrate court. This decision came after investigations failed to establish corruption charges against public servants.
The CBI had moved the court seeking to transfer the case to the Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate at Esplanade Court, as the final chargesheet will now be filed exclusively against private individuals under the Indian Penal Code.
The case originated from a complaint lodged by the deputy general manager of Punjab National Bank's Mumbai Zonal Office. The investigation covered allegations of criminal conspiracy, cheating, and dishonest abuse of official position. Among those named as accused were Ravi Shankar Gupta, Vipul Ambani, and other directors and officials representing Firestar International Limited and Firestar Diamonds International Private Limited, along with unnamed public servants of the bank.
The prosecution submitted that the investigation found no statutory corruption. Special Judge J P Darekar observed that "during investigation, no incriminating material in respect of offences under the Prevention of Corruption Act has been found against any private persons as well as public servants of Punjab National Bank" and allowed the CBI's plea to transfer the case to a magistrate.
