Rolls Royce Ghost, MF Hussain painting & Birkin handbags owned by Nirav Modi's fetch Rs 51 cr at auction

The two-day online auction garnered Rs 2.04 crore against the expected proceeds of Rs 52 lakh.

By PTI | Mar 06, 2020, 03.43 PM IST

MF Hussain's painting of 'Battle of Ganga and Jamuna- Mahabharata 12' went for a record 12 crore, the highest price received so far for the painter's work.

MUMBAI: A Rolls Royce car, paintings of famous artists MF Hussain and Amrita Sher-Gil, designer handbags and other luxury items belonging to fugitive diamond jeweller Nirav Modi garnered over Rs 51 crore in the second auction conducted on Thursday.

As many as 40 items went under the hammer on Thursday, which marks the completion of auction of assets seized by the Enforcement Directorate.

The auction was conducted by Saffronart on behalf of the deputy director, Enforcement Directorate, and was expected to garner a minimum of Rs 40 crore in proceeds.

A collection of 112 prized assets of Modi were put up for live and online auctions from March 3 to 5, which included major artworks by contemporary and modern Indian artists, designer handbags, luxury watches and cars.

Media preview at Saffron Art Gallery in Mumbai on February 24, 2020, ahead of the Spring Live Auction being conducted by Saffronart on behalf of the Tax Recovery Officer of India's Income Tax Department.

While the online auction on March 3-4 garnered Rs 2.04 crore against the expected proceeds of Rs 52 lakh, the live auction on Thursday garnered Rs 51.41 crore more.

These assets, seized by the ED, were put on auction in an attempt to recover a part of the dues Modi owes to various banks.

According to officials from Saffronart, the ED would get Rs 53.45 crore from the proceeds of these two auctions.

The lots that went under the hammer included legendary painter MF Hussain's painting of 'Battle of Ganga and Jamuna- Mahabharata 12' which went for a record 12 crore, the highest price received so far for the painter's work.

Nirav Modi's assets, seized by the ED, were put on auction in an attempt to recover a part of the dues he owed to various banks.

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

V S Gaitonde's tranquil 1972 painting was sold for Rs 9.52 crore while Manjit Bawa's Untitled 1992 sold for Rs 6.16 crore.

Modi's Rolls Royce Ghost witnessed a high demand, selling for twice its estimate at Rs 1.68 crore (USD 240,000).

Nirav Modi's Art Fortune Auctioned: Grey Nude & Other Paintings That Stole The Show

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A glimpse of the dimensions of fugitive diamantaire Nirav Modi’s wealth recently came to light with the auction of some of his artworks. The much-anticipated affair in Mumbai not only showcased his credentials as an art collector but also displayed his fondness for doing things in a big way. Suffice to say that those who successfully placed their bids that night, walked away with some largish works. When hanging on the wall, many of these works would be hard to miss, rather they’d dominate. Here are some works that were auctioned.