Raj Kundra, businessman and actor Shilpa Shetty‘s husband, was arrested late on Monday evening by the Mumbai police in a case related to the alleged production and distribution of pornographic films. A senior officer said Kundra “appears to be the key conspirator” of the case. 

Raj Kundra, 45, was arrested by Mumbai police‘s Crime Branch after being booked under several sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Information Technology Act, Commissioner of Police, Mumbai, Hemant Nagrale said.

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“There was a case registered with Crime Branch Mumbai in February 2021 about creation of pornographic films and publishing them through some apps. We’ve arrested Mr Raj Kundra in this case on 19/7/21 as he appears to be the key conspirator of this. We have sufficient evidences regarding this. Investigation is in progress please,” the police officer said in a statement.

In February this year, actor Sagarika Shona had alleged that a famous businessman and the husband of a well-known actor was running a porn racket along with his aides. A case was registered on February 4 at the Malwani police station in suburban Mumbai.  

The Mumbai Police had arrested nine people in the case, including model-actor Gehana Vasisth and a man called Umesh Kamat, who is a former employee of Raj Kundra.

Raj Kundra, who is the son of a bus conductor, has set up a business empire that includes trading, construction, real estate, energy, steel, shares, media, sports and gold trading. Kundra and his wife Shilpa Shetty flaunt a luxurious lifestyle, moving earlier this year into a lavish mansion in Juhu. Kundra started his first business venture at the age of 17 by selling pashmina shawls and likes to emphasise that he is “self-made.”

The business tycoon had in 2019 started a company Viaan Gaming, which launched an application Housie Quiz last year. He also owns the app JL Stream.

Raj Kundra is not new to controversy. As co-owner of the Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket team Rajasthan Royals, he was questioned in 2013 in the betting and spot-fixing scandal that rocked Indian cricket.