Indian government blames Congress for bank fraud

NEW DELHI, Mar 05 (Xinhua): In a major twist, the Indian government Monday blamed the main opposition Congress party for the country's biggest-ever bank fraud of 1.8 billion US dollars involving billionaire jeweller Nirav Modi and his uncle Mehul Choksi.

"The matter of Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi is connected to Congress, the problem started during their time, they cannot mislead the nation on this issue," Indian Railway Minister Piyush Goyal told the media in the national capital.

Though the bank fraud began in 2011 when Congress was in power led by then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, but it came to light only last month when Punjab National Bank, the country's second-largest state-owned bank, reported the issue to authorities.

Indian investigators have so far arrested 17 people, including some top bank officials, in connection with the fraud.

Though Modi has not been formally charged for the crime, India's External Affairs Ministry has revoked the passports of the disgraced jeweller and his uncle and business partner Mehul Choksi, and launched a massive crackdown on companies linked to the duo.

The celebrity jeweller, however, has gone into hiding. He is said to have fled the country and was reportedly last seen in New York after his appearance at the World Economic Forum in Davos as a part of an Indian delegation.