SRK records statement over IPL controversy

Superstar’s Kolkata Knight Riders accused for alleged undervaluation of shares

MUMBAI: Shah Rukh Khan recorded his statement before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) over the alleged undervaluation of shares of his co-owned Indian Premier League cricket team, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), sources said on Wednesday.

On Tuesday, Shah Rukh responded to the second notice in six months issued by the ED in mid-October pertaining to the probe into the alleged irregularities in the sale of shares of Knight Riders Sports Pvt Ltd (KRSPL) to a Mauritius-based company. The ED is investigating whether the shares of the team were allegedly undervalued as it could be violative of the provisions of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA).

Earlier this year, the ED had served a notice to Shah Rukh in May but the actor did not appear before the agency. Prior to that, Shah Rukh was quizzed in 2011 for allegations that KKR had received illegal money transferred from certain foreign tax havens.

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The company, KRSPL, which runs the KKR, is jointly owned by Shah Rukh, actor Juhi Chawla and her husband Jay Mehta. It is alleged that five million shares of KRSPL were sold to Mehta’s Mauritius-based company, Sea Islands Investments Ltd, in 2008 and were reportedly undervalued eight to nine times.

In 2011, Shah Rukh was directed to provide relevant documents of the purchase of players, revenues, advertising details and the team’s shareholding pattern. During Tuesday’s questioning, officials said Shah Rukh cooperated with the investigators and also provided documents of the deals. 

Published in The Express Tribune, November 13^th, 2015.

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