New Delhi, March 30
It was a day of great tumble in the country’s stock markets today after the CBI blew the whistle against leading stock broker Ketan Parekh and arrested him this evening for allegedly defrauding the Bank of India to the tune of Rs 137 crore.

Parekh’s involvement in the pay order scam reported by the Bank of India took a heavy toll in the bourses and the main barometer of scrip prices, the Bombay sensex slumped by 147 points at the close of day.

The woes of the market did not end at the close of trading as the CBI picked up Parekh in the evening for “defrauding the bank”. A CBI spokesperson while confirming the arrest of the broker in Mumbai said the case was registered following a complaint from the Bank of India with the Bank Security and Fraud Cell of the agency. The FIR was filed in a designated court in Mumbai.

The day at the BSE began on a ominous note after Parekh’s involvement in the scam became public and the CBI raided his premises in the city.

Soon after the Bank of India reported the scam, the sleuths of CBI swooped on the residential and official premises of the broker.

Friday trading, which has come to be seen as jinxed as this was the seventh consecutive Black Friday in the bourses, was depressed in other bourses as well and the Madras Stock Exchange index dropped by 130.87 points at close.

For the Calcutta Stock Exchange, which is going through its own problem of payment crisis and resignation of the entire board, scrip prices dived down further. The Delhi Stock Exchange index plunged by 25.15 points to close at 901.95.

In Delhi, the Finance Minister, Mr Yashwant Sinha indicated that action would be initiated once the market regulator the Securities and Exchange Board of India completes its inquiry into stock market fluctuations. Marketmen said foreign institutional investors and speculators resorted to heavy selling following the disclosures on Ketan Parekh’s involvement in the scam.

Trading sentiments were already battered on constant meltdown of the technology stocks dominated Nasdaq and Dow Industrial Average in the last few trading sessions.

Information Technology stocks suffered the most as Parekh has major stake in some of the leading companies.