Bollywood celebs and their brush with the law in 2013
Thursday, December 05, 2013 12:24 IST
Several personalities from showbiz this year found themselves embroiled in criminal activities, one way or the other
They say karma eventually catches up with you. Well, law is quicker in
this particular race, especially if the parties in question are famous.
What happens later with the system -- influence on the defendants' part
as usual -- remains debatable but as a starter, it's encouraging to see
even the celebrities go through the regular grind when caught on the
undesired side of law. For instance, actor Rajpal Yadav was recently
sent straightway to jail for fraud. However, it's also worth noting that
celebs aren't always wrong. Sometimes they are wronged as well.
HitList points out instances from both ends of the spectrum that happened in 2013...
Underworld calling
Crime scenario: Just when we were made to believe that Mumbai's
underworld has bid goodbye to Bollywood, some B-Town folks started
receiving calls and SMSes -- filled with extortion and death threats, of
course -- from the mafia. Producer Boney Kapoor and singer Sonu Nigam
were the earliest to register a complaint. Later, Akshay Kumar and Karan
Johar too pointed out that they were being harassed by organised crime
syndicates in the city.
Sanjay Dutt jailed
Crime scenario: In March, the Supreme Court upheld Dutt's five-year
sentence -- 18 months of which he had already spent in jail during thje
trial -- for possessing illegal arms during the 1993 bomb blasts. He was
granted four weeks to surrender to the authorities. So much so, in
mid-May, Dutt withdrew his long-pending mercy plea and finally
surrendered to the Mumbai Police. Presently serving his sentence, he was
allowed to leave on an extended parole in October on medical grounds.
Shruti Haasan's stalker
Crime scenario: Last month, the Bandra police arrested Ashok Shankar
Trimukhe accused of stalking Shruti Haasan. He was booked under Indian
Penal Code sections 452 (house trespass after preparation for hurt,
assault or wrongful restraint), 354 (assault or criminal force to woman
with intent to outrage her modesty) and 354D (stalking). He reportedly
tried to force his way in and touched her shoulder when Shruti answered
the door bell of her Bandra flat. She later filed an FIR.
Om Puri's 'domestic abuse'
Crime scenario: The critically acclaimed actor was booked under
Section 324 (punishment for causing hurt by dangerous means), Section
504 (Intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace) and
Section 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code, for
allegedly assaulting his wife Nandita at his apartment in Andheri. She
complained that he assaulted her with a wooden stick. He was initially
declared absconding but later filed an anticipatory bail.
Sana Khan kidnap case
Crime scenario: The Bombay High Court refused to a quash a police
case against the actress for her alleged involvement in the kidnapping
of a minor girl -- with whom her nephew was romantically involved in. As
per the evidence shown at the court, Sana's car was used in the crime.
The actress, who rose to fame thanks to Bigg Boss, was earlier granted
anticipatory bail in June. Regardless, she will be starring opposite
Salman Khan in the upcoming film Jai Ho
The Jiah Khan case
Crime scenario: This murder/suicide episode still remains a mystery,
with new twists adding to the intrigue every passing month. When the
young actress was found dead in her apartment and a suicide note found
few days later, an abortion and the resulting depression were considered
to be the trigger. As a result, Sooraj Pancholi, who was allegedly in a
live-in relationship with Jiah, was taken into custody. However, he was
later granted bail.
Vindu Dara Singh arrested
Crime scenario: Mumbai police nabbed Vindu Dara Singh for suspected
links with those involved in the alleged spot-fixing during Indian
Premier League. According to the police, the actor had links to bookies
who were arrested in the crackdown. With Vindu's arrest, the
cricket-underworld-Bollywood trio's culpability in betting took
formidable shape.
Akshaye Khanna cheated
Crime scenario: All those wondering where has this 'serious' actor
disappeared all of a sudden were greeted with unpleasant news in
October. Turns out Akshaye was reportedly duped of Rs 50 lakh after
being promised quick and huge returns from investments in the commodity
market. The crime branch of Mumbai police got into action and
investigated the complaint filed by him at the Malabar police station.
Samir Karnik tax evasion
Crime scenario: Bollywood producer and director was arrested by
Service Tax Department for alleged tax evasion of Rs 1.18 crore and was
later released on bail by a court. The anti-evasion team found that
Karnik had provided copyright services for R11.50 crore to a film
distribution company in respect of Yamla Pagla Deewana. Sunny Deol too
was accused in the case but he was not arrested as he paid R86 lakh out
of the R1.95 crore tax demand against his firm.
Santoshi-Nadiadwala fallout
Crime scenario: Not only actors, even producers have their share of
tiffs over films and the commerce behind them. In August, Sajid
Nadiadwala reportedly barged into Rajkumar Santoshi's home, threatening
him and thus creating a scene. Due to which, Santoshi ended up filing an
FIR against him. That was then. The latest development in their
three-year-long dispute is that they have finally made peace with each
other.
Leela Maria Paul's arrest
Crime scenario: This Southern actress who made her Bollywood debut
with John Abraham's Madras Cafe, was arrested for illegal possession of
arms, fraud and conspiracy. After her arrest in May, she was granted
conditional bail in July. At the time of her arrest, the Kerala-born
starlet, along with her partner-in-crime boyfriend Sukash Chandrasekhar,
had nine luxury cars worth Rs 20 crore in their possession.
Hear hear!
Some cases against actors that are or were pending...
>> A 2008 assault case against Govinda was ultimately squashed
last month. The actor had slapped a fan of his for getting too close;
following which, the fan filed a complaint. However, the court ruled in
the actor's favour.
>> The sessions court in Mumbai will decide today whether there
should be a fresh trial with fresh evidence in the 2002 case against
actor Salman Khan after graver charge of culpable homicide not amounting
to murder was added.
>> Sonali Bendre and Tabu were produced on Monday before a court
in Jodhpur by the defence for their identification by a witness in the
black buck poaching case of 1998. Interestingly, the eyewitness turned
hostile by refusing to identify.
>> In September, the Bombay High Court said the complaint filed by
a social activist against Shah rukh khan and his wife Gauri -- accusing
the couple of conducting sex determination of their surrogate child --
was unfounded.
Mired by controversies, season 7 of Bigg Boss may be struggling hard to
fetch a good TRP, but there is one couple in the house whose gossip cog
seems to be rotating at a rapid pace ever-since the onset of the show.