The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Mumbai Police has widened its probe into an alleged Rs 60 crore fraud involving businessman Raj Kundra and his wife, actress Shilpa Shetty. On Thursday, investigators confirmed that Shilpa has been summoned for questioning after officials traced a suspicious Rs 15 crore allegded transaction to her company as per reported by News18.
According to reports, investigators discovered that Raj Kundra had transferred Rs 15 crore to a firm linked to Shilpa Shetty. The funds, categorized under billing and advertising expenses, have raised red flags.
Authorities are now seeking clarity on the nature of these payments, with some money allegedly routed to sister companies.
The EOW has stated that key documents are still pending, and more information about the trail of funds is expected to emerge in the coming weeks.
The case stems from a complaint filed in August by businessman Deepak Kothari, director of Lotus Capital Financial Services Ltd. Kothari accused Raj Kundra, Shilpa Shetty, and another individual of cheating him of over Rs 60 crore between 2015 and 2023.
He claimed that the money was invested under the pretext of business expansion but was allegedly diverted for personal use instead.
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Shilpa and Raj’s legal team has strongly denied the charges. Their lawyer, Advocate Prashant Patil, issued a statement dismissing the allegations as “purely civil in nature.” He added that the matter had already been adjudicated by the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) in October 2024.
“This is an old transaction wherein the company went into financial distress and eventually got entangled in a long legal battle. My clients deny all the allegations made against them,” Patil said.
For now, Shilpa Shetty is expected to appear before the EOW to provide her version of events regarding the Rs 15 crore transfer. The investigation is ongoing, and officials have suggested that additional questioning and scrutiny of financial records will follow.
The development adds another chapter to the high-profile controversies surrounding the couple, who have previously faced scrutiny in other financial and regulatory matters. While Raj Kundra has maintained that they “have not done anything wrong,” the outcome of the EOW’s inquiry will determine the legal course ahead.
As the case unfolds, all eyes remain on how the probe will impact Shilpa Shetty, who continues to balance her acting career, business ventures, and public life with the mounting legal challenges.
Shilpa Shetty's team also released an official statement about this matter and said, " At the outset , we would like to state that , this piece of information is totally fake and mischievous intentionally planted in the public domain to defame my client . We shall go to the root of mischief and adopt the due process of law to file criminal proceedings and civil damages against all the news articles circulated mischievously to defame my client. No such amount was ever received by my client Mrs Shilpa Shetty Kundra and at this stage , we cannot reveal anything further as the matter is sub judice. My Clients are however , compelled to initiate criminal and civil cases against all the fake media articles who have circulated the news without verifying the truth."
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