Naseer arrested, granted bail

CUTTACK:  Naseer Khan, Bollywood actor and producer of the recently released film `Shadow,’ and an associate were arrested by the Crime Branch here on Tuesday in connection with the over Rs 100 cr multi-level marketing scam.

Both were, however, granted bail by the Orissa High Court. Counsel for Naseer alleged that they were arrested from the High Court premises, which was contested by the government advocate.

The Bench of Acting Chief Justice I M Quddusi and Justice Sanju Panda directed their production and ordered release on furnishing personal bonds of Rs 25,000.

Naseer is a director of Fine Indisales Pvt Ltd, a Kanpur-based multi-level marketing company alleged to have duped crores of rupees from the public by promising attractive rates of returns on deposits. The money collected from the public was alleged to have been invested in the film `Shadow.’ Naseer is the co-producer as well as the protagonist of the film. The film was released on August 21.

The Crime Branch has filed six cases against Fine Indisales Pvt Ltd and other MMCs such as Trident Advertising and Trade Link Pvt Ltd, Eve Industries, Lakshya Level Marketing Pvt Ltd, Lui Brail Educational Society, Many Mantra Marketing Services Pvt Ltd and Dream Achiever.

The investigating agency has frozen several accounts of these MMCs in different banks at Mumbai, Kanpur, New Delhi, Gurgaon and Kolkata and also at Bhubaneswar and Balasore with deposits to the tune of Rs 191 cr. The CB has stated that the money collected from people here was illegally transferred to accounts outside the State.

Huge amounts were also transferred to the account of Great Entertainment Company that funded the film `Shadow,’ the agency said.

Several firms, including Fine Indisales Pvt Ltd, had approached the High Court filing writ petitions against the freezing of their accounts. Naseer and his associate had come to attend the hearing of the case in the High Court on Tuesday.