PNB Fraud: Nirav Modi’s 'Firestar' Diamonds And High-Value Jewelry Lots Go Under The Hammer On April 27

Fugitive diamantaire Nirav Modi has suffered a double blow. While the London High Court rejected his latest petition to stall extradition to India, assets of his former US-based firm Firestar Diamond are set to go under the hammer on April 27 as part of liquidation proceedings under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), 2016.

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According to a sale notice issued by the liquidator, the assets include loose natural diamonds and jewellery made of gold, silver and platinum, studded with both natural and lab-grown stones. The inventory was earlier attached during a probe by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with the Punjab National Bank (PNB) fraud case and was subsequently released for monetisation.

All items have been certified by the Gemmological Institute of India(GII) and are currently stored in Surat. The e-auction will be conducted online, with inspection allowed until April 18 and submission of documents along with earnest money deposit (EMD) by April 25.

The auction comes at a crucial juncture as Modi’s legal maneuvers to resist extradition have hit a near-total impasse. On March 25, the High Court of Justice,London, rejected his petition to reopen proceedings against his extradition, ruling that his appeal failed to demonstrate the “exceptional circumstances” required for a review. Modi had cited alleged risks during interrogation and a “real risk of torture” if extradited, but the court found no merit.

The ruling brings him closer to being sent back to India to face trial in connection with the Rs 14,000-crore PNB fraud and related money-laundering charges. Modi has exhausted multiple legal avenues in the UK, including earlier appeals and bail requests, all of which were denied.

The liquidation of Firestar Diamond assets forms part of sustained efforts by enforcement agencies and the PNB-led consortium of lenders to recover funds tied up in the high-profile fraud case. While similar auctions were conducted in 2023 and 2025, this April round represents a continued push to monetise the remaining high-value stock of the now-defunct Firestar Diamond empire.

The EMD requirements reflect the scale of assets on offer, ranging from Rs 3.9 lakh for smaller jewellery lots to Rs 17.85 lakh for high-value mixed gold chain sets, the highest among the categories. Diamond-studded gold ring lots dominate the inventory, with EMDs ranging between Rs 11 lakh and Rs 15.8 lakh, while additional gold ring sets are pegged between Rs 11 lakh and Rs 12.9 lakh. Platinum jewellery, including rings and earrings, carries an EMD of around Rs 8 lakh, with smaller platinum ring lots listed at approximately Rs 5.55 lakh.

Bulk lots of loose natural diamonds, including certified stones, require an EMD of about Rs 6.5 lakh, while yellow gold chain lots are pegged at around Rs 16 lakh. Rings with white stones made of a gold-silver mix have the lowest entry point at around Rs 3.9 lakh.

Among the key items on offer are three parcels of gold rings studded with natural diamonds weighing 144.52 carats, 125.16 carats and 206.57 carats, respectively, as well as 473 natural loose diamonds aggregating 229.15 carats.

Bids will be placed in fixed increments of Rs 5,000 across categories. However, the reserve price for each lot has not been disclosed and will be announced on the day of the auction. Officials said the EMD indicates the relative value of each lot and not the final sale price, which will be determined through competitive bidding.

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This is roughly the fourth major round of e-auctions since 2023. Previous rounds successfully liquidated high-end watches, including Rolex and Jaeger-LeCoultre, and luxury cars such as Rolls-Royce Ghosts and Porsche Panameras owned by the Modi family.

Firestar Diamond had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2018, along with its US-based sister concerns A. Jaffe and Fantasy, following a freeze on assets as investigations into the alleged $1.8 billion (Rs14,940-crore) fraud at PNB intensified.

Sources said the current auction may include unsold or residual inventory from previous rounds, along with newly catalogued items. The inclusion of lab-grown stones alongside natural diamonds is a notable detail, reflecting the “mixed” nature of Firestar’s commercial stock. Officials and industry sources also suggest that the Adjudicating Authority (NCLT) may have set recovery targets for this round, as some lots in previous auctions in 2025 went unsold due to high reserve prices.

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