On Friday, a special court granted bail to Shilpa Shetty’s husband and businessman Raj Kundra in an alleged Bitcoin investment scam case. The special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court granted him bail after he appeared before it in a money laundering case linked to GainBitcoin. He spoke to the press afterwards and said ‘Satyamev Jayate’ (truth alone triumphs).
Raj Kundra granted bail in alleged money laundering case
The special PMLA court in Mumbai granted Raj bail on Friday after he presented himself before the court in a case registered by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). The case is linked to an alleged Bitcoin scam from 2018. Raj’s advocate, Prashant Patil, told ANI that the ED had filed a charge sheet against his client, but there was no strong basis for it. He also mentioned that Raj has been cooperating with the ED since 2018. Raj was granted bail on a surety of ₹1 lakh and has to seek the court’s permission to travel abroad.
Raj Kundra says case is ‘hyped’ by the media
After being granted bail, Raj spoke to the press and claimed he is innocent, thanking God for the bail. “Unfortunately, the media has hyped up the case. There’s nothing like that. Maybe you don’t understand legal terms, so you report whatever you can make of it,” he said, adding, “I am no longer wearing a mask because all my masks are off. It’s time to remove other people’s masks. He also said, “Satyamev Jayate,” smiling widely, when speaking to the press about his bail.
About the alleged Bitcoin scam case
The case against Raj is linked to an FIR registered in 2018 at Nigdi and Nanded police stations in Pune. The complaint alleges that investors were cheated in the name of Bitcoin mining. The central probe agency has alleged that Raj received 285 Bitcoins from the alleged mastermind of the Gain Bitcoin Ponzi scam, Amit Bhardwaj, who is alleged to have set up a Bitcoin farm in Ukraine.
The charge sheet alleged that an agreement titled Term Sheet was signed between him and Amit’s father, Mahendra Bhardwaj, and hence, Raj’s claim of being only a mediator was not tenable. The agency has also alleged that Raj did not share details of the wallet address linked to these Bitcoins. It further claimed that he and his wife, Shilpa, bought properties at prices well below market rates to make the money appear legal. The court issued a summons to Raj in January, taking cognisance of a charge sheet filed by the Enforcement Directorate in the case.
With inputs from ANI and PTI
