A Mumbai court on Tuesday sent businessman Raj Kundra to police custody till July 23 in a case related to making pornographic video clips and sharing them through mobile apps, PTI reported. His aide, Ryan Thorpe, has also been remanded for the same duration.
Kundra, the husband of actor Shilpa Shetty, was arrested on Monday for allegedly being the “key conspirator” in the case, reported The Indian Express.
The police said that women were coerced into making the pornographic clips with promises of acting roles. Some of those arrested were owners of streaming websites, where the porn clips could be viewed in exchange for a subscription fee.
On Tuesday, police arrested Thorpe from Nerul in Navi Mumbai in connection with the case, reported The Times of India. With this, a total of 12 people have been arrested in the matter so far.
Kundra and Thorpe were produced in the court of the chief metropolitan magistrate in Mumbai on Tuesday afternoon.
Kundra’s name cropped up in connection with one of the companies involved in featuring the porn clips on digital platforms, the police said.
The case was first registered in February, and involved the creation of pornographic content and its publishing through some apps, a statement by the Mumbai Police Commissioner Hemant Nagrale said.
“We have arrested Raj Kundra in this case on 19/7/21 as he appears to be the key conspirator of this,” Nagrale told The Indian Express. “We have sufficient evidence regarding this. Investigation is in progress.”
Kundra was arrested after being summoned for questioning in the case.
After his arrest, Kundra was taken for medical examination at JJ Hospital in Mumbai by the police, reported ANI. The entrepreneur was later taken to the Mumbai Police Commissioner’s office.
Kundra has been booked under sections 420 (cheating), 292 (sale, etc, of obscene books and other material), 293 (related to obscene and indecent advertisements and displays), and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and relevant sections of the Information Technology Act, reported the Hindustan Times.
The businessman was also booked under sections of the Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act.
Last year, Kundra’s name had emerged in a similar case filed by the Maharashtra Cyber police. He had then filed for anticipatory bail and the court is expected to take up his application next week.
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