Hyderabad: ED summons actor Mahesh Babu in money laundering case
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Hyderabad (PTI): The Enforcement Directorate has summoned Telugu actor Mahesh Babu for questioning in a money laundering case linked to an alleged real estate fraud case perpetrated by some local groups, officials said Tuesday.
Babu, 49, has been asked to depose on April 28 at the federal probe agency's office here and get his statement recorded under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), the sources said.
The case pertains to Sai Surya Developers, a prominent real estate firm based in Vengal Rao Nagar, the Surana Group and some others. The ED had conducted searches in the case on April 16 at premises located in Secunderabad, Jubilee Hills and Bowenpally.
Babu is not being investigated as an accused at present and may not be involved in the scam. He may have endorsed the realty projects of the accused companies not knowing about the alleged fraud, they said.
The agency is looking to understand transactions worth Rs 5.9 crore which the actor received from the companies as endorsement fee via cheques and cash, they said.
The actor could not be contacted for a comment.
The ED case stems from a Telengana Police complaint against Sathish Chandra Gupta, proprietor of Sai Surya Developers and Narendra Surana, director of Bhagyanagar Properties Ltd. and others for "defrauding" and "cheating" gullible investors of their hard earned money in the name of advance for sale of plots involving huge amounts.
The accused orchestrated "fraudulent" schemes involving unauthorised land layouts, selling same plots to different customers, accepting payments without proper agreements, and false assurances of plot registrations, the agency said in a statement issued post the searches.
It said the actions of the accused caused financial losses to numerous investors.
"By cheating the general public with predetermined and dishonest intention, they generated proceeds of crime which was diverted and laundered for wrongful gain to themselves and related entities," the ED had said.
It said "incriminating" documents related to the deposit made by the investors and about "unaccounted" cash transactions worth around Rs 100 crore were recovered during the raids.
"Unaccounted" cash of 74.50 lakh was seized from the premises of Narendra Surana and Surana group of companies, it said in the statement.
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CM Siddaramaiah alleges ‘criminal conspiracy’ in Sringeri recount, vows legal action
Bengaluru (PTI): Alleging a “criminal conspiracy” by BJP candidate D N Jeevaraj in the Sringeri Assembly poll recounting, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said the outcome was manipulated after valid postal ballot votes in favour of Congress leader T D Raje Gowda were tampered with during the recounting process.
Following a Karnataka High Court order on an election petition filed by Jeevaraj, challenging Raje Gowda’s election, the reverification and recounting were conducted on Saturday.
After the reverification and recount of postal ballots for the Sringeri Assembly constituency, votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda were reduced by 255, the returning officer said.
A report on the matter has been submitted to the Election Commission of India for further action, the officer added.
Congress leader Raje Gowda had won the 2023 Assembly polls from Sringeri by 201 votes, defeating his nearest rival Jeevaraj.
Addressing a press conference in Bengaluru, Siddaramaiah said the High Court had directed the recounting of postal ballots and that irregularities were noticed during the exercise conducted on May 2.
“This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” Siddaramaiah said, alleging that valid votes cast in favour of Raje Gowda were altered after being accepted by counting agents of all parties, including Congress, BJP, and JD(S).
He claimed that during the recounting of postal ballots, 255 votes were initially accepted as valid by all agents but were later tampered with by subordinate officials.
“There is a second mark on the votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda. They had accepted these as valid votes. Subsequently, another mark was made by officials. This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” he said.
When asked who was behind the alleged conspiracy, the CM replied, “It was hatched by Jeevaraj and others. It is planned.”
Siddaramaiah further alleged that the returning officer acted improperly by declaring the result despite the presence of an Election Commission observer during the recounting.
“Immediately after the counting, the returning officer announced the result. He should not have done so; this is against the law,” he said.
He pointed out that Raje Gowda had originally won by 201 votes, but after the recounting, the BJP candidate was declared the winner by 52 votes.
“The BJP has committed a criminal act of conspiracy. This is not vote chori but vote dacoity,” he alleged.
The CM said a police complaint had already been filed by Raje Gowda’s election agent, Sudhir Kumar, and emphasised the need for electoral integrity.
“We want transparency and free and fair elections. That is what our Constitution mandates,” he added.
Stating that the government would pursue legal remedies, Siddaramaiah said, “We are preparing an appeal challenging the returning officer’s announcement in a court of law.”
Responding to a separate query on elections in other states, the CM said there appeared to be an anti-incumbency factor in West Bengal, while results in Tamil Nadu were “surprising,” adding that Vijay’s party was emerging as the largest there.
Following the victory of party candidates in Bagalkote and Davanagere South, Siddaramaiah expressed confidence about future electoral prospects in Karnataka.
“Even in 2028, we will win the Assembly elections. We will come back,” the CM said.
Siddaramaiah added that he would order a forensic examination into the alleged tampering of postal ballots.
