Rolls-Royce Ghost, Porsche Panamera among Nirav Modi's assets to be auctioned

A Rolls Royce Ghost and 2010 Porsche Panamera cars are among 112 prized assets belonging to absconder diamantaire Nirav Modi will be put up for live and online auctions starting on February 27.

These assets were seized by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the auction is an attempt to recover a part of the dues Modi owes to various banks.

The Rolls-Royce Ghost with advanced features, technology and comforts will be on auction (live) estimated at ₹75-95 lakhs, besides the 2010 Porsche Panamera for between ₹10-15 lakhs (online). Both cars are being put under hammer for re-auctions.

Last year, 12 cars belonging to Nirav Modi and his fugitive uncle Mehul Choksi were auctioned off at prices ranging from ₹2.7 lakh to ₹1.33 crore.

The cars, most of them high-end models, were seized by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) after it charged Nirav Modi with money-laundering in the Punjab National Bank (PNB) fraud case. Some cars have special VIP numbers, and their starting price was decided based on their age and extent of use. The auction fetched the government exchequer ₹3.28 crore in all.

Sold for ₹1.33 crore, the Rolls Royce Ghost had been driven 24,439 km and was registered in 2010. The 2010 Porsche Panamera, driven 30,326km, was sold for ₹54 lakh.

The two cars were re-auctioned a few months later. This time the Rolls Royce Ghost and Porsche Panamera were sold for ₹1.70 crore and ₹60 lakh, respectively. Later on, in November 2019, a Bentley Arnage was also put under the hammer at a base price of ₹2 crore - the highest of all the cars owned by Modi that are being auctioned.

Besides these, a Mercedes Benz GL 350 was also sold almost ₹16 lakh over the starting price. The car’s starting price was ₹37.80 lakh but it sold for ₹53.76 lakh. The other cars sold include a Mercedes Benz CLS 350, two Honda Brios, a Toyota Innova 2.5, a Honda CR-V and a BMW X1, among others.

(With inputs from agencies)