A letter claimed to be written by Nirav Modi to Punjab National Bank (PNB) is circulating on WhatsApp. The authenticity of the letter still stays unconfirmed but a person familiar with Modi’s legal strategy said it could be genuine.
In the letter, Modi appealed to PNB to support his efforts to repay the debts. On the 31st of January 2018, the CBI registered an FIR saying two PNB employees colluded with companies linked to Modi in illegal transactions allowing the firms to raise funds abroad.
Modi in the letter said, “The media suggests that the liability of the Nirav Modi Group is over Rs 11,000 crores. As you are aware, this is entirely incorrect and the liability of the Nirav Modi Group is substantially less. Even after your complaint was filed, in good faith, I wrote to you saying please sell/ allow me to sell Firestar Group (Modi’s flagship company), or their valuable assets, and recover the amounts of money that may be found due not just from Firestar Group, but also from the three firms. The valuation of the business was approximately Rs 6,500 crores which could have helped reduce/discharge the debt to the banking system.”
Modi further claimed that the buyers’ credit facility has been extended by PNB to the 3 partnership firms over the years and there has been no default. Modi said, “These, and other assets of Firestar International Pvt Ltd., (FIPL,) Firestar Diamond International Pvt Ltd., (FDIPL) and the three firms (including receivables and assets seized) could have settled all the amounts due to banks. However, now that stage appears to have passed, and there is generally panic.”
In the letter, Modi also said his kin have been wrongly named in the complaint by PNB.
