The Bombay High Court directed actor Shilpa Shetty and her husband, Raj Kundra, to deposit โน60 crore if they wish to travel to Los Angeles or any other foreign destination. The court denied their request to travel and refused to suspend the Look Out Circular (LOC) issued against them, as reported by media houses.ย
The couple had filed a plea in the high court seeking to quash the LOC, which was issued in connection with a First Information Report (FIR) alleging a โน60 crore fraud. The court adjourned the matter until October 14.
The case stems from a complaint lodged by Deepak Kothari, a 60-year-old Mumbai businessman and director of Lotus Capital Financial Services, and is under investigation by the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Mumbai Police. Kothari alleged that between 2015 and 2023, Shetty and Kundra misused funds he provided for their business, Best Deal TV Pvt Ltd, a company operating an online shopping platform for lifestyle products, for their personal expenses.ย
According to Kothari, in 2015, the couple, through a mediator, approached him for a โน75 crore loan for Best Deal TV at an agreed interest rate of 12 pc. Later, they reportedly asked him to reclassify the amount as an โinvestmentโ instead of a loan, promising monthly returns and repayment of the principal.
Kothari stated that he transferred โน31.95 crore in April 2015 under a share subscription agreement and an additional โน28.53 crore in September 2015 under a supplementary agreement, with the entire sum credited to Best Deal TVโs bank accounts.ย
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However, he later discovered that insolvency proceedings had been initiated against the company for allegedly defrauding another investor. Kothari claimed that his repeated attempts to recover his money were unsuccessful and accused Shetty and Kundra of โdishonestly usingโ the funds for personal gain. Notably, Shetty stepped down as director of Best Deal TV in 2016.
The coupleโs lawyer, Prashant Patil, refuted the allegations, stating they would present โour truthโ before the investigating agencies. Following a preliminary inquiry, the EOW determined that Kothariโs funds had been misused and registered a case against Shetty, Kundra, and an unidentified associate under Sections 403 (dishonest misappropriation of property), 406 (criminal breach of trust), and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code.
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