The actor alleged that “Bhartia brutally raped her while Singh recorded the assault.” The abuse continued for the next three days, as per her plea.
MUMBAI: Thane police have filed an FIR against businessman Shyam Sundar Bhartia and his associate Pooja Singh after a Bollywood actor accused them of rape and fraud. This action came after the Bombay High Court asked the police why they had not acted on her complaint for three months.
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The actor approached the court through her lawyers, Mohammed Ahmed and Sofiya Shaikh, demanding action.
The actor stated in her petition that she met Jubilant FoodWorks Chairman, Shyam Sundar Bhartia, at a Mumbai hotel through Pooja Singh. During their meeting, Bhartia showed interest in investing in her project. Later, he invited the actor and Singh to Singapore for further discussions.
According to the complaint, after the actor and Singh reached Singapore on May 18, 2023, Bhartia and Singh allegedly drugged her without consent.
The actor alleged that “Bhartia brutally raped her while Singh recorded the assault.” The abuse continued for the next three days, as per her plea.
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The actor claimed that Bhartia and Singh later used the recorded video to threaten her. They allegedly forced her to meet them multiple times in hotels in Mumbai and Delhi. Furthermore, Singh reportedly started a company, and Bhartia had promised to invest Rs 50 crore in it.
However, by March 18, 2024, only Rs 9.44 crore had been invested.
The actor alleged that Singh “transferred the money to her own account without informing her.”
Additionally, Singh allegedly misused digital signatures to remove the actor from the company’s directorship.
The actor had initially filed a complaint with the Thane police on November 11, 2024, but no action was taken for months.
During a recent hearing, the Bombay High Court, led by Justices Revati Mohite-Dere and Dr. Neela Gokhale, questioned the police about the delay. When no satisfactory response was given, the court ordered the Thane police commissioner to answer through video conferencing.
Following this, ACP Rajkumar Dongre instructed the Additional Public Prosecutor to inform the court that “an FIR would be registered after the actor’s statement was recorded.“
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After the court’s intervention, the FIR was filed against Bhartia and Singh under several sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including charges related to rape, intentional insult, criminal intimidation, and provisions under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
The Bombay High Court disposed of the petition but made it clear that “the police must investigate the case based on its merits.”
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