The Enforcement Directorate has intensified its investigation in the AP*RNography case involving businessman Raj Kundra, husband of actress Shilpa Shetty. Raj, who was recently summoned to appear before the agency, reportedly did not attend the hearing, leading to which fresh summons were issued. This development comes after reports of a raid conducted at his residence.
Shilpa Shetty’s Raj Kundra was summoned in the Enforcement Directorate’s first money laundering case related to the pornography scam exposed by Mumbai Police in February 2021. Now, according to IANS, he has not appeared for the hearing, requesting more time. As a result, a fresh summons has been issued, directing him to appear for questioning in the ongoing investigation on December 4.
According to agency sources, Raj Kundra informed the Enforcement Directorate that he was unable to appear for questioning on Monday and requested for more time. Meanwhile, actress Gehana Vashishtha has also been summoned for questioning on December 9 in connection with the case, as the investigation into the alleged pornography scam continues.
The development comes just two days after the Enforcement Directorate raided several places linked to Raj as part of its probe into money laundering linked to the production and distribution of pornographic material. The ED action followed a series of raids at 15 locations in Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh on Friday, where several bank accounts were frozen and cyber-digital devices seized.
Searches were conducted in Mumbai, Kanpur, Gorakhpur and Kushinagar targeting individuals who allegedly provided technical support to P*RN apps in exchange for payment. The agency is now examining the records and documents seized during the raids, and is focusing on tracing the flow of illicit income within India and internationally, in an effort to identify the ultimate beneficiaries of the crime.
For those unaware, Kundra was detained by the Mumbai Police in July 2021 on charges of production and distribution of obscene material, but was later granted bail. He has consistently denied the allegations and claimed that he has been made a ‘scapegoat’ in the case.
Earlier this year, he came under the radar of the Enforcement Directorate as part of the money laundering probe into the Gain Bitcoin Ponzi scam. ED seized assets worth Rs 98 crore, which include a residential flat in Juhu, Mumbai, a bungalow in Pune and various equity holdings.
The legal troubles date back to 2018, when the ED started investigating Amit Bhardwaj’s Ponzi scheme.
Also read: Shilpa Shetty’s husband Raj Kundra, in his first statement after the ED raid at his house, firmly told the media not to drag his name: ‘No amount…’