Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty and her husband Raj Kundra have been accused of defrauding a bullion trader out of INR 90.38 lakh in a gold scheme. The Mumbai Sessions Court took cognizance of the matter. On June 10, the court ordered the police to investigate the case.
The complaint was filed by Prithviraj Saremal Kothari, the managing director of Riddhi Siddhi Bullions Ltd. He lodged his complaint against Satyug Gold with the special court under the Maharashtra Protection of Interest of Depositors (In Financial Establishments) Act, 1999.
It is to be noted that the accused couple are the faces behind Satyug Gold. According to Kothari, Kundra launched the Satyug Gold scheme in March 2014. The scheme promised to return gold at the same price after five years.
Kothari alleges that someone from the company reached out to him to invest in the scheme. He even claimed that Kundra and Shetty convinced him to invest. As per the scheme, anyone wishing to invest would have to pay the full amount of gold at a discounted rate up front upon applying. They would then receive the agreed-upon quantity of gold on the maturity date.
Kothari deposited INR 90,38,600 in April 2014 and was promised 5,000 grammes of 24-carat gold in April 2019. In April 2020, 5000 gm of 24-carat gold was evaluated at INR 3,200 per gramme, for a total value of about INR 1.6 crore.
However, Kothari claims that he did not get the promised gold when the maturity date arrived on April 2, 2019. He has evidence to support his claims, including a covering letter with the signature of Shilpa Shetty Kundra and an invoice from Satyug Gold Private Limited.
In January 2015, Kothari learned the scheme had been ended by the company. However, he was guaranteed to receive the gold, as promised.
The court, acknowledging the allegation, stated that there is evidence of a prima facie cognizable offence. The BKC police station was subsequently ordered by the court to investigate the claims stated in Kothari's complaint.
If they find evidence of such an act, the court has instructed the investigating agency to file a formal complaint (FIR) against the accused under the applicable sections of the MPID Act and the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
This is not the first time Raj Kundra has come under the Enforcement Directorate's radar. Earlier this year, he was in the news in connection with a Ponzi scheme-related money laundering investigation where the team seized properties valued at INR 97.79 crore, including a Mumbai flat under Shilpa Shetty's name.
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