Shilpa Shetty hits back at £5.8m fraud case and says her name is being weaponised

Highlights

• Shilpa Shetty says she has no role in the company’s finances or decisions
• Actor claims her family loaned nearly £1.9m (₹20 crore) that remains unpaid
• Mumbai police continue to probe an alleged £5.8m (₹60.4 crore) cheating complaint
• A petition has been filed before Bombay High Court seeking to quash charges
• Raj Kundra also denies wrongdoing and calls the case “motivated”

Shilpa Shetty has issued a direct response to the fraud case as the Mumbai police inquiry carries on. Speaking through a formal statement, the Bollywood actor said she had been unfairly named in a £5.8m (₹60.4 crore) complaint linked to the now-defunct Best Deal TV retail venture. The matter has been hanging over her for months. She said she had reached a point where she could not ignore it.

Shilpa Shetty calls £5.8m fraud claims a nine year attempt to pin criminal blame on her Getty Images

Why the Shilpa Shetty fraud case surfaced in the first place

The police case stems from a complaint filed by businessman Deepak Kothari. He has alleged that funds he provided between 2015 and 2023 were taken as a loan-cum-investment for business expansion but were not returned. According to the complaint, he was misled and the money was used for personal reasons.

The firm at the centre of the case, Best Deal TV Pvt Ltd, was a home-shopping and e-commerce platform. Shilpa Shetty and her husband, Raj Kundra, were listed as directors at various points. The police Economic Offences Wing has added cheating and criminal breach of trust sections to its probe.

Shilpa Shetty rejects £5.8m fraud case and says unpaid £1.9m loan is being ignored Getty Images

How Shilpa Shetty responded to money allegations

In her statement, Shetty said she was never involved in the company’s decisions. She described her position as non-executive, without signing powers or control of spending. She said she endorsed products for the shopping channel in a professional capacity like “several other public figures” and that payment for some of this work is still pending.

The figure she introduced was smaller but significant. She said her family had loaned the venture nearly £1.9m (₹20 crore) and that the amount “remains unpaid.” She said the attempt to assign criminal liability to her after almost nine years was “legally unsustainable.” She also raised concern about how her name is used in reports. She said such coverage can damage a woman’s public dignity and reputation.

What does the Shilpa Shetty fraud case mean legally now

Her team has filed a quashing petition before the Bombay High Court. That is now the legal route the couple is relying on. She said she trusts the process and will seek “appropriate remedies.” Kundra has pushed out similar remarks in his own posts, calling the case “baseless and motivated.”

He said he has cooperated with the investigation and asked the media to show restraint because the issue is before the court. Shetty used a line from the Bhagavad Gita about resisting injustice, then stopped there.