CBI files 3 fresh FIRs against Mehul Choksi in over Rs 6,700-cr fraud case

Three fresh FIRs have been filed by the CBI against absconding diamantaire Mehul Choksi on the basis of a complaint from the Punjab National Bank (PNB), bringing to light an additional loss of Rs 6,746 crore incurred by it and other banks of a consortium, officials said.

Four years after Choksi's dramatic escape and the failure of the state-run PNB to detect the scam between 2010 and 2018, the bank submitted three complaints to the CBI on March 21, reporting the additional loss caused by the diamantaire and his firm Gitanjali Gems Limited, Nakshatra Brands Limited and Gili India Limited.

The PNB and the other members of the consortium had extended credit facilities to these companies.

Choksi's counsel Vijay Aggarwal told PTI that it was a "witch hunt".

"When one FIR has been lodged and a chargesheet filed for the total loss to the banks, how can there be a separate FIR now for every small transaction?" he asked.

"Going by that logic, if they claim a total loss of Rs 13,000 crore,