New Delhi: Enforcement Directorate is likey to file chargesheet in the Sukesh Chandrasekhar 200 crore money laundering case on Wednesday. According to reports, Jacqueline Fernandez has been named as accused in the chargesheet as a beneficiary of the extortion money. The chargesheet reportedly mentions that the actor was aware that Sukesh Chandrashekhar was a criminal and an extortionist.
Jacqueline was summoned by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with the money laundering case. In June, Jacqueline appeared at the ED headquarters, following the summons to record her statement. She told ED that she met Chandrashekhar in 2017.
"I have been speaking to Sukesh since February 2017. In August 2021, he was arrested, after which I never met him. He told me that he is the owner of Sun TV and from the political family of Jayalalithaa," Jacqueline told the ED, according to PTI.
There were also reports that she was contacted by Sukesh Chandrashekhar through her hairdresser when he was in jail. Jacqueline reportedly told ED that she was not aware that Sukesh was calling her from inside the jail and that she wondered why he ‘avoided meeting her on occasions’.
In April, the agency had attached assets worth ₹7.27 crore of the actor in the case registered under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. In December 2021, Jacqueline was stopped from boarding a flight to Muscat from Mumbai airport.
Sukesh had claimed that he was in a relationship with Jacqueline but the actress had denied it.
Chandrasekhar had released a handwritten note that read, “As I have mentioned before, Jacqueline and I were in a relationship. Seeing each other and the relationship was not based on any kind of monetary benefits like the way it is protected, commented and trolled in a bad light. The relationship had lots of love and respect for each other, without any expectations. I have gifted her things and done things for her family, are normal things one would do for his loved one in a relationship. It is personal, I don’t understand why it is being made such a big deal. At the same time I would like to again certain that none of it was 'proceeds of so called crime'. It is all from legitimate earnings and the same would be proved in court of law very soon.”
Jacqueline shared her statement on Instagram that read, “The country and its people have always given me tremendous love and respect. This includes my friends from the media, from whom I have learnt a lot. I’m currently going through a rough patch but I’m sure that my friends and fans will see me through it. It is with this trust that I would request my media friends to not circulate images of a nature that intrude my privacy and personal space. You would not do this to your own loved ones, am sure you would not do this to me either. Hoping that justice and good sense prevails. Thank you.”