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From Shilpa Shetty breaking down to Raj Kundra in Arthur Road Jail: Here are 8 developments in the pornography scandal

We take a look at the latest developments in the pornography racket shaking up Bollywood

Published: July 27, 2021 16:35 Bindu Rai, Entertainment Editor

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1. Raj Kundra has been sent to a 14-day judicial custody following a High Court hearing that took place earlier today. His aide Ryan Thorpe has also been handed down the same decision. The businessman’s lawyer has stated he will be moving the High Court for bail, with a hearing for the bail application scheduled to take place tomorrow, on July 28. Bollywood star Shilpa Shetty Kundra’s husband has been held in remand since July 19 following his alleged links to a pornography racket in India where he is under investigation for filming and distributing adult content through mobile apps, the Hotshot app in particular. Image Credit: AFP

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2. Following his court appearance today, Kundra was taken to JJ Hospital for a medical check-up before being moved to Mumbai’s Arthur Road Jail. This is the same prison that housed Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt after he was jailed under the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act for his alleged links to the 1993 serial blasts in Mumbai. He was later moved to Pune’s Yerwada jail. Image Credit: PTI

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3. The Bombay High Court has granted anticipatory bails to model-actors Poonam Pandey (pictured) and Sherlyn Chopra, stating that no coercive action will be taken against the duo until September 20, 2021. Chopra had been summoned to appear before the property cell on July 27 in connection with the porn racket case involving Kundra. Image Credit: IANS

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4. Bollywood actress Flora Saini is the latest celebrity who has been forced to put out a statement distancing herself from the Kundra case after a news channel dragged her into the legal brouhaha surrounding Shilpa Shetty’s husband. The media entity in question shared a WhatsApp chat they alleged took place between the businessman and his associate Umesh Kamat where they discussed the ‘Stree’ actor as a potential candidate for a film role. “If two people discuss my name in a chat that doesn’t mean I am aware or involved with what was being discussed. But since I am not from a film family, it’s considered okay to drag my name without even checking with me. Do these people understand the gravity of dragging a woman’s name in a porn scandal?” Saini told news media. The up-and-coming actress is just one of many celebrities being dragged into the pornography racket unspooling in Mumbai with Kundra at the centre of the storm. Image Credit: IANS

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5. Actor Umesh Kamat, who has starred in shows such as ‘Asambhav’ and ‘Eka Lagnachi Teesri Goshta’ has issued a statement stating that he has been dragged into the controversy through a case of mistaken identity and is threatening legal action. “I, Umesh Kamat an actor by profession, have been unnecessarily dragged in the controversy concerning businessman Mr. Raj Kundra, due to the lack of due diligence by news channels/media platforms. Mr. Raj Kundra and his associate Mr. Umesh Kamat, who coincidentally shares my name have been accused of allegedly producing and creating pornographic content. While this news is being reported by various news channels/media platforms my name and image are being tainted by leading media platforms/portals as my pictures/photographs which are available in the public domain are being misused by representing me as the accused involved in the Raj Kundra case,” he added. The actor continued: “This irresponsible action of broadcasting my photographs and associating my name with the Raj Kundra case on various media platforms has caused tremendous humiliation, unwanted speculation and agony to me and my family. These actions have resulted in severe damage to my reputation and amount to defamation.” Kamat further clarified that he has no association to Kundra and that the actor just shares a common name with his associate. He added: “Since the concerned news channels/ media platforms have failed to follow the basic protocol of running a fact check on the information that is being broadcast and used in their news pieces, I have decided to pursue appropriate legal action against all the responsible entities.” Image Credit: IANS

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6. A report by NDTV cites police sources as saying that Shetty Kundra broke down and yelled at her husband when cops raided their home on July 23. “We have everything, what was the need to do all this,” the actor is believed to have said to Kundra as he arrived at their home with Mumbai Police for a search. Police sources further claimed the actor also said that the “family’s reputation was ruined, their endorsements in the industry were being cancelled and that she had to give up many projects”. She also talked about financial losses, according to the sources. Image Credit: AFP

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7. The Mumbai Crime Branch has separately appointed a financial auditor to probe the money trail of Kundra and his celebrity wife and their alleged involvement in the pornography racket case. Yesterday, their joint bank accounts in the city of Kanpur were also seized. Sources told ANI earlier that the police is also probing whether money earned from the apps was being invested in bitcoins by Kundra. The charges Kundra is currently facing including Indian Penal Code Sections 420 (cheating), 34 (common intention), 292 and 293 (related to obscene and indecent advertisements and displays) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) besides relevant sections of the IT Act and the Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act. Image Credit: IANS

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8. According to an ANI report quoting police sources, the businessman was apparently anticipating his arrest. According to the report, Kundra had readied a ‘Plan B’ to dodge investigation and also changed his phone in March so that data from the device could not be recovered. ANI quoted an official saying: “When crime branch officials asked him about his old phone, he told them he threw it away. Police believe that the old phone contains many important pieces of evidence and is looking for it.” Image Credit: AFP

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