[BREAKING] Mumbai Court refuses bail to Raj Kundra in porn racket case

A Mumbai Court on Wednesday refused to grant bail to businessman and husband of Bollywood actor Shilpa Shetty, Raj Kundra in relation to a pornographic film racket case..After hearing the arguments at length, Chief Metropolitan Magistrate SB Bhajipale rejected Kundra's bail application. .He observed that "the effect of alleged offence is having nexus with public at large. The alleged offence is also detrimental to the health of our society. In such circumstance, societal interest in the prosecution of a crime which has a wider social dimension cannot be overlooked.".Senior Advocate Aabad Ponda, appearing for Kundra, pleaded for parity submitting that the chargesheet in the case had been filed a long time back and that all the other accused in the case had been released on bail. He also stated that Kundra has been in custody for a long time and that he had been co-operating with the ongoing investigation. Ponda assured his continued co-operation in the investigation if bail is granted.He submitted that people with graver offences had been granted bail, whereas Kundra had been accused of offences where maximum punishment was 7 years. "The question is not whether he is innocent or not, it is whether he can be released on bail or not," Ponda argued. .The prosecution opposed the bail application stating that the investigation was still in progress. It also argued that there is a possibility of Kundra tampering with evidence if granted bail. It was submitted that "needy women were being forced into this crime, while the accused were rich and influential people." It was further argued that there were more victims whose statements are yet to be recorded, and that Kundra a British national could always flee to the United Kingdom..At this point, Ponda argued that the Court could always impose security conditions like confiscation of passport and taking Court's permission before leaving the country, etc and that Kundra's passport was already with the Crime Branch.He submitted a rejoinder stating that the police had not shown a single incident where Kundra had asked or threatened people to not give statements to the police. .Kundra has been charged for offences under Sections 292, 293 (sale of obscene material) under the Indian Penal Code, Sections 67, 67A (transmission of sexually explicit material) under the Information Technology Act and provisions of the Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act.He was arrested by the Mumbai Police on Monday and produced before the Metropolitan Magistrate at Esplanade, who remanded him to police custody till July 23, 2021,which was extended till July 27.On Tuesday, the Magistrate remanded Kundra to judicial custody for 14 days..Kundra has also filed a plea filed in Bombay High Court, through his Parinam Law Associates, assailing his remand to police custody and all subsequent orders passed by the Mumbai Magistrate Court in relation to a pornographic film racket case.Along with directions to quash the orders of custody, Kundra has sought an immediate release from detention. The Court has sought for a response from the Mumbai Police and will be hearing the plea on July 29, 2021. .[Read order]