Actor held, Rs 43 lakh in new notes seized

MADHYA PRADESH

POLICE ON Thursday detained a television actor in Hoshangabad town of Madhya Pradesh on Thursday and seized Rs 43.6 lakh in new currency notes from his possession.

Rahul Chelani, who has played negative roles in Hindi crime serials, was subsequently handed over to the income tax authorities.

The police had stepped up checking following reports that some people in the region were promising to exchange demonetised notes with a commission of 20 to 30 per cent. Rahul was with his brother Kapil when the police stopped their Innova car whose registration plate read “President Anti Corruption Society”. The driver and the brothers allegedly refused to cooperate when the police asked them to step out of the car.

The police later found the money — comprising two wads of Rs 100 notes and the rest in new Rs 500 and Rs 2,000 notes — stashed under a seat. Rahul initially told the police that he had received the money as remuneration for working in serials like Savdhaan India. The two then reportedly tried to bribe the police.

The vehicle (MP04-BC2505) is registered in Rahul’s name in RTO, Bhopal. Though he belongs to Itarsi, the permanent and temporary addresses show him as a resident of Bhopal.

The actor claimed that he had acted in several crime shows and recently started working for a real estate firm in Itarsi.

Hoshangabad SP Ashutosh Pratap Singh said that the police seized the cash under Section 102 of the CRPC and handed over the trio to income tax authorities. He said it was not possible to withdraw such a large amount of cash without the collusion of bank officials. The income tax authorities have started questioning the trio about the source of the money.