In a significant turn of events, a court in Udaipur has denied bail to filmmaker Vikram Bhatt and his wife, Shwetambari Bhatt, in a fraud case amounting to ₹30 crores. This marks the second instance in which their bail request has been rejected, as the court emphasized that further investigation is necessary.
The court noted that the investigation is still in a critical phase, with potential for additional arrests and questioning. The serious nature of the accusations made the court decide against granting bail at this time.
The case was initiated by Dr. Ajay Murdia, a Udaipur-based businessman and founder of the Indira Group of Companies. He has accused the Bhatt couple, among others, of deceiving him out of approximately ₹30 crores. Dr. Murdia claims that he invested the money with Vikram Bhatt for the production of several films, including a biopic about his late wife, Indira. He also mentioned that he was promised substantial profits, estimated between ₹100 crores and ₹200 crores, but did not receive any returns, which led him to file a complaint.
The investigation has seen several arrests already, including co-producer Mehboob Ansari and a vendor named Sandeep, before the Bhatt couple was taken into custody. Vikram and Shwetambari Bhatt were arrested in Mumbai on December 7 and brought before a Udaipur court two days later, where they were initially remanded to police custody and then placed in judicial custody for 14 days.
This situation came to light when Rajasthan Police arrested the couple in Mumbai as part of their inquiry into accusations of cheating. Udaipur’s police had requested a transit remand to question them further about the alleged financial misconduct.
The FIR was lodged at Bhopalpura police station under allegations of cheating and other offenses. Investigators are currently scrutinizing financial transactions, contracts, and potential misuse of funds, as well as interviewing others involved in the project.
Neither Vikram nor Shwetambari Bhatt has released a public statement addressing the allegations. With the court’s recent decision not to grant bail, the case is ongoing, and new developments are anticipated as the investigation moves forward.
