Kochi: In connection to an investigation over alleged fraudulent financial transactions by Parava Films, the Income Tax (IT) Department conducted a raid on Thursday at actor, producer and director Soubin Shahir’s office in Kerala’s Kochi. The IT department informed that the raid was over allegations that Soubin has not filed tax returns and has concealed financial records.
Earlier, the Enforcement Department (ED) had conducted investigations into film production companies following complaints of money laundering in the film industry.
While this investigation was going on, Siraj Valiyaveetil from Alappuzha’s Arur filed a complaint against Soubin, the producer of the superhit film Manjummal Boys.
According to his complaint, certain individuals associated with Parava Films, which produced Manjnummal Boys, cheated him and did not pay him any cost share or return on investment. A police investigation found evidence pointing towards serious financial fraud, Mathurbhumi reported. Following this, a report was submitted before the Kerala Court on the basis of ED’s investigation.
Police recorded Siraj’s statement and collected relevant bank records, which suggested that Parava Film engaged in financial fraud. Police filed a case against the production company, accusing it of criminal conspiracy, breach of trust and forgery.
According to Siraj, he had invested Rs 7 crore in the film, and producers initially claimed that the total cost of the production was Rs 22 crore, which was only Rs 18.65 crore. He alleged that the producers deceived him about the schedule of the shooting, giving him false information.
Police claimed that their investigation suggested that Parava Films orchestrated a well-planned fraud. The producers had promised Siraj a 40 per cent profit share. But they didn’t pay him despite the film becoming a major hit, and the police claimed that this was true, and bank records suggest the same. Siraj claimed that he incurred a loss of around Rs 47 crore.