Bombay High Court denies Shilpa Shetty relief in Raj Kundra fraud case

The Bombay High Court denied actress Shilpa Shetty relief in a financial fraud case linked to her husband, businessman Raj Kundra, on Tuesday.

During a hearing before Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar and Justice Gautam Ankhad, the bench required whether Kundra would provide an affidavit confirming Shetty’s lack of involvement with his company, and if Shetty would consider becoming a prosecution witness in exchange for permission to travel abroad.

The bench posed critical questions, asking, “Is Raj Kundra prepared to affirm in an affidavit that you have no connections with the company? And if you wish to travel abroad, you are willing to become an approver in this case?”.

Both Shetty and Kundra have been questioned by Economic Offences (EOW) of the Mumbai Police regarding the case. Reports indicate that Shetty was interrogated for approximately four and a half hours, during which she asserted that she has no ties to the company during the relevant transactions and had resigned from her position.

The court further sort clarification, asking, “Will Raj Kundra state this in an affidavit? And if you want permission to travel abroad, why not become an approver in this case against Raj Kundra?”

The High Court has given Shetty time until Thursday to submit her response, the hearing was adjoined until then.

In addition, the court reviewed a plea from Shetty and Kundra challenging the lookout notice issued against them by the EOW. Their attorney requested a three-month suspension of the notice, emphasizing their lack of intent to flee the country. They argued that the case is several years old and outlined their travel plans to an event in Colombo, where Kundra has been invited.

The public prosecutor, representing the state, opposed this request, citing the seriousness of the pending financial offenses. After considering both side, the court declined to grant immediate relief and scheduled the next hearing for Thursday.

Background of the case:

In August 2025, a cheating case was filed against Shilpa Shettym, Raj Kundra and another individual following  a complaint by Director of Lotus Capital Financial Services Limited, Deepak Kothari. Kothari accused the couple of defrauding him of Rs60 crore  through questionable financial transactions between 2015 and 2023, allegedly under the guise of business expansion.

Kothari claimed he was introduced to Shetty and Kundra by an agent in 2015, at which point they were directors of Best Deal TV, with Shetty holding 87 percent of the company’s shares. The couple requested a loan of Rs75 crore from Kothari at an annual interest rate of 12 percent.

To circumvent taxation, they agreed that Kothari would invest the amount and receive monthly returns. Kothari initially transferred Rs32crore in April and later sent an additional Rs28crore by March 2016.

After Shetty resigned as director in September 2016, Kothari discovered that the company had defaulted on a loan of Rs1.28 crore. Frustrated by unanswered requests for repayment, Kothari reported the matter to the Juhu Police. Given the amount involved exceeded Rs10 crore, the case was subsequently transferred to the EOW for investigation. The next court date is set for October 16.