MUMBAI: Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty has said she was unaware of the nature of content on the mobile app which her husband Raj Kundra is accused of streaming pornographic content
According to Indian media reports, Shetty said it was another accused London-based Pradeep Bakshi, a brother-in-law of Raj Kundra, who was involved with the app. She also stressed the difference between ‘erotica’ and ‘pornography’, saying her husband was not involved in producing pornographic films.
Mumbai police recorded Shetty’s statement on Friday evening as they questioned her to know about her husband’s alleged link to the pornographic films.
Kundra, who was arrested this week, was sent to police custody till July 27. Police said they had seized 48 TB worth of images and videos, mostly adult content from his office.
Police also said they had a record of transactions registered to Kundra. They suspect money from the sale of pornographic content was used for online betting. Police have seized Rs 7.5 crore so far.
During yesterday’s hearing, Kundra’s lawyer objected to classifying the seized content as ‘pornography’. He said the content does not come under IT Act for which bail is not allowed as similar material is available on other platforms such as Netflix.
Kundra has denied any wrongdoing and has also named Pradeep Bakshi as the key figure. Police said Kundra was kept updated on the finances of the app, and also set up a WhatsApp group to discuss the production, distribution, and selling of content.
Kundra has approached the Bombay High Court to challenge his arrest and dismiss the lower court’s order on extending police custody. He claimed that he was arrested after being summoned to the police station “under the garb of recording his statement”.
The police say Raj Kundra is a “key conspirator” in the case, and that they had sufficient evidence against him. The case was registered on February 4 after a woman told the police she had been forced to take part in a pornographic film after being promised an acting job.
