The Sukesh Chandrasekhar case of money laundering worth Rs 200 Crores has been the talk of town for a while now.
After Jacqueline Fernandez, actress Nora Fatehi had been summoned by the Enforcement Directorate for allegedly receiving gifts from Sukesh.
As per a report, Nora had previously confessed that Sukesh had gifted her a BMW Sedan. The ED charge sheet reads that on her request, around Rs 75 lakh was given to B. Mohan Raj in Chennai! Nora was also apparently given a Gucci bag and an iPhone.
But now, in a recent questioning with the ED, Nora has denied receiving any gifts from the conman but instead, claims that his wife Leena Maria had given them to her. A report states that in exchange for Nora’s participation at an event held in Chennai in December 2020, Leena gifted her the BMW car.
Nora was asked whether she knew or met Sukesh before the event and she told ED, “No, I did not know who he was or nor have I ever spoken to him prior to the event.” In addition to this, Nora also denied using the Signal app via which Sukesh apparently called her to inform her of the car she would be gifted.
Fatehi then said it was Leena who informed her about the gifting. “Yes, when the event started, she (Leena) and a couple of other people along with two videographers came to the suite to gift me and to take pictures with me. They were shooting videos while they were handing me the big green Gucci box and the iPhone. She (Leena) did not mention any details. She just kept him (Sukesh) on the loudspeaker and he was thanking us for coming and saying – they are huge fans of mine”
Leena was apparently excited for the actress to judge their staffs’ dance competition. Nora continued, “She (Leena) then announced – We are gifting you a brand-new BMW car for yourself from our side as a token of love and generosity. Everyone in the room was pleasantly surprised. I remember also saying – wow thank you but that’s too much. I can’t, but I just went with the flow because I wasn’t really sure if this was just for show in front of the cameras or if they really meant it. But they kept insisting.” When Nora asked others if it was normal for actors to get such gifts, the response was reportedly positive.
“The fact that Ms Leena announced this while the cameras were rolling in front of people for me is considered an official professional announcement at the event because my work had started the minute I received them and the minute they came with the cameras and people. I and Leena never discussed the car separately after or before the event. Any discussion about the car happened in front of people and never alone. The conversation with Ms Leena about the car happened once in my suite in front of everyone. That’s all,” Nora said.
Nora was also asked if she bought bags from the Gucci store in Mumbai’s Palladium Mall after the event. “I did not buy any Gucci bags from the mall after the event. However, I visited the Gucci store for Christmas shopping where I purchased some gifts for my family members/friends/management. At the time, I asked the Gucci representative if it was possible to exchange a gift that I received as I didn’t like the colour. She said – you must send it over and I’ll get the colour changed as long as it is brand new. I made my shopping purchases via my card,” said Nora.
Nora also firmly denied when she was asked if Sukesh had paid for any of her purchases at the Gucci store.