Shilpa Shetty’s husband Raj Kundra’s porn case isn’t his first controversy: Here’s a look at his brushes with the law

Shilpa Shetty’s husband, businessman Raj Kundra, was arrested in connection to a pornography racket bust in Mumbai late Monday night. “The crime branch registered a case in February about the creation of pornography films and publishing them through some apps. After investigation, we have arrested Raj Kundra in the case as he appears to be the key conspirator of this. We have sufficient evidence regarding the case,” stated the press release issued by Mumbai Police. He has now been remanded to police custody till July 23.

While it is still a developing situation, this isn’t the first time Raj Kundra has been in the news for the wrong reasons. Shilpa Shetty‘s husband has had a fair share of controversies, including one involving Salman Khan and a few others involving the Enforcement Directorate (ED). Here’s a look:

Raj Kundra’s comment on Salman Khan:

Back in 2014, Raj rubbed Salman’s fans the wrong way after he supposedly took a dig at the Radhe actor. At a press conference, he was asked if he would consider pursuing acting. His response was, “Firstly, who would watch me? Secondly, as a businessman, I would be unaffordable.” He was then quoted as saying in an interview with a leading daily, “I can bet Salman doesn’t earn that much…well, at least nowhere near me.”

Soon enough, Raj issued a statement to clarify his stand. As reported by Indian Express, the businessman had said, “My statements were then misquoted out of context, causing a lot of furore from Salman Khan fans. Nowhere, during the course of the interview did I pick on Salman Khan, I just used his name as a reference as he is one of the biggest stars in the country today. My wife and her family share a very good rapport with the Khan family and I thereby have never meant no ill towards anyone.”

Raj Kundra’s IPL betting case:

Raj Kundra and his wife Shilpa Shetty owned a cricket team in the Indian Premier League. The couple had bought Rajasthan Royals when the league had just begun. But their run couldn’t last long as Raj got entangled in a match-fixing case. A Hindustan Times report from 2013 said that Raj was in touch with seven bookies and placed bets on his team through three IPL seasons. He was questioned for several hours by the Delhi Police at the time. Eventually, in 2015, Raj was served a lifetime ban from the series.

Raj Kundra’s bitcoin scam:

Fast forward to 2018 and Raj was again being questioned. This time, he was summoned by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) about his alleged involvement in the bitcoin trade which had been deemed illegal by the government at the time. A report by Live Mint quoted an ED official as saying, “Raj Kundra was called for questioning in a bitcoin scam, which the Thane crime branch is investigating. We are looking at the angle of whether there is any alleged money laundering in the scam.”

Later, as reported by Economic Times, Raj told the press outside the ED office, “Dear media thanks for your breaking news across the country. I have given you all bytes outside the ED office where I was called as a witness to give evidence.”

Raj Kundra’s real estate scandal involving Dawood Ibrahim’s aide Iqbal Mirchi:

Raj was questioned yet again in a real estate case involving the late Dawood Ibrahim aide, Iqbal Memon alias Iqbal Mirchi. He was questioned for nine hours. Raj had denied any wrongdoing in the real estate dealings.

Also read: Shilpa Shetty’s husband Raj Kundra, arrested in porn case, was once asked how he earns money ‘bina kuch kiye’. Watch

Raj Kundra’s ex-wife Kavita’s allegations against Shilpa Shetty:

Raj’s controversies weren’t limited to his professional life. He had to face problems in his personal life as well. The businessman was married to Kavita before he met Shilpa. In the days leading up to their separation, Kavita had blamed Shilpa for their broken marriage.

Speaking with Daily Mail, Kavita had said, “I look at the pictures of them together and think, she’s with my husband, she’s living my life. While I was trying to put our marriage back together, he was talking constantly about Shilpa, as if it didn’t matter what happened to us because he had found someone better, cleverer and more famous than me. Now he has begun pestering me for a divorce. I asked him if he planned to marry someone else but he avoided the question.”

“I was really upset by what she said,” Shilpa had said, responding to the claims. “She knew very well that I didn’t even know her husband when she walked out on him,” she had added.

However, earlier this year, the interview resurfaced and Raj addressed the allegations and claimed that Kavita was having an affair with his sister’s husband when they were living in London. He also said that she was paid ‘thousands of pounds’ for the interviews against Shilpa. Raj went on to reveal that he hasn’t been able to meet his daughter, who was less than two months old, since their separation.