Auctioning of fugitive Nirav Modi's assets by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) raised a total of Rs 53.45 crores or 7.65 million USD. This amount is much higher than what the agency had estimated the items would fetch.

The auctioning had been divided over the last three days and was undertaken by Saffronart, a renowned auctioning house that had auctioned Nirav Modi's assets in March 2019 on behalf of the income tax department. The three-day bidding process this week saw competitive bidding in the packed saleroom, as well as over the phone and online.

Saffronart CEO and co-founder Dinesh Vazirani used the term "White Glove sales" while describing the auction. White glove sales mean that everything that had been put up for auction was sold with most lots surpassing their estimates. Earlier, the government had estimated the items would fetch approximately Rs 41 crores from these bids. There were a total of 112 assets owned by Nirav Modi that were auctioned.

'Boys with Lemons'

Among this was Amrita Sher-Gil’s rare 1935 painting 'Boys with Lemons' which was auctioned for the first time, and sold for Rs 15.7 crores (USD 2.24 million).

MF Husain's most expensive work

An MF Husain painting from Nirav Modi's collection, "Battle of Ganga and Jamuna: Mahabharata 12, 1972" was also sold for Rs 13.44 crores (USD 1.92 million), achieving a world record for the artist.

Rare luxury watches

Among the 25 luxury collectibles, the 'Girard-Perregaux Opera One’ Triple Bridge Tourbillon Wristwatch' was sold for Rs 95.2 lakhs (USD 136,000). This watch was sold for more than 30 times its estimate, a first for a watch in a public auction.

A rare Audemars Piguet Jules Audemars Grande Complication’ automatic wristwatch was also sold during this auction for more than four times its estimate at Rs 78.4 lakhs (USD 112,000).

Collectible handbags

A dazzling 18K yellow gold and diamond evening bag by Van Cleef and Arpels (Lot 21) was also sold for four times its estimate at Rs 20.16 lakhs (USD 28,800). An Hermès Kelly Blue Atoll bag too fetched triple its estimated price.

The elegant Rolls-Royce Ghost witnessed a high demand, selling for twice its estimate at Rs 1.68 crores (USD 240,000). The auction on March 3 and 4 too had seen a vibrant demand for limited edition collectible watches. A Cartier’s Asymmetric Crash’ Wristwatch had led the sale, receiving over 50 bids, and selling for more than twelve times its estimated price at Rs 36.4 lakhs (USD 52,000) was among the most noticeable.

Nirav Modi, who defrauded the state-run Punjab National Bank of Rs 14,000 crore, is currently languishing in a prison in the United Kingdom. Nirav Modi’s son Rohin approached the Bombay High Court on Tuesday and filed a petition against the auction of 15 rare paintings by the ED, claiming that they belonged to Rohin Trust of which he is the beneficiary and not his father. The court had refused to grant a stay on the proceedings but directed ED to deposit the proceeds from the auction in a bank account pending the disposal of Rohin’s plea.