ED To Grill Superstar Mahesh Babu Over Money Laundering Issues Of A Real Estate Group; Summons SSMB29 Actor

Mahesh Babu Summoned By The ED: In a shocking development, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tuesday sent notices to superstar Mahesh Babu at his Jubilee Hills house over his questionable involvement in promoting a real estate group which is now accused of defrauding their patrons. The SSMB29 actor was asked to attend the investigation on April 27 regarding the same. Mahesh Babu is known for his selective but periodical endorsements which are a notable part of his earnings that contribute to his massive net worth. The actor reportedly was paid Rs 2.5 Crore as remuneration for promoting the real estate group(s) Sri Surya Developers and Surana, in the discussion, which is suspected to have been sourced from a crime.

In the notices served to Mahesh Babu, the ED mentioned that they have conducted searches at four premises in Hyderabad and Secunderabad on April 16 under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, in connection with an ongoing investigation against Sai Surya Developers and Ors.

Based on the FIRs registered by Telangana Police on Sai Surya Developers and Bhagyanagar Properties under various sections of IPC, 1860, for defrauding and cheating gullible investors of their hard-earned money in the name of an advance for the sale of plots involving huge amounts.

The ED mentioned that the accused persons orchestrated fraudulent schemes involving unauthorised land layouts, selling the same plots to different customers, accepting payments without proper agreements, and false assurances of plot registrations. Their actions caused financial losses to numerous investors.

The searches by ED resulted in the confiscation of incriminating documents evidencing details of amounts collected by fraudulent means from various investors as well as unaccounted cash transactions worth Rs 100 Crore. Unaccounted cash of about Rs 74.50 Lakh was also seized.

Mahesh Babu's Work Front

The actor fully reserved his two years for SS Rajamouli's most prestigious magnum opus, a globe-trotting adventure drama referred to as SSMB29. The movie stars Priyanka Chopra and Prithviraj Sukumaran in pivotal roles. The movie's shooting completed two key schedules and the unit will soon begin the important and lengthy schedule at Kenya shortly.