Veteran actor Jagapathi Babu was questioned by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for four hours on Thursday in connection with the Sahiti Infra fraud case, involving a whopping ₹360 crore scam. The ED is investigating Jagapathi Babu's involvement in promotional campaigns for Sahiti Infra and seeking details about the remuneration he received for these advertisements. Specifically, the agency is probing the legitimacy of payments made to Babu and examining financial transactions between him and Sandu Purnachandra Rao, former director of Sahiti Infratec Ventures India Pvt. Ltd. (SIVIPL).
The ED's investigation revealed that Sahiti Infra allegedly defrauded over 700 buyers through pre-launch offers of luxury residential projects, diverting funds into multiple accounts and shell firms while failing to deliver promised flats or refunds. Jagapathi Babu was treated as a witness in this ongoing investigation and was asked to provide his bank statements for the last 15 years for verification. The ED also reviewed video clippings of Sahiti project launches attended by Jagapathi Babu and his media statements related to the business activities.
Earlier in the investigation, Sandu Purnachandra Rao was arrested on August 25 under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, and the company's managing director, B Lakshminarayan, was taken into custody in September 2024. The ED has seized documents, frozen bank accounts, and provisionally attached assets worth ₹161.5 crore in this case. Investigations are ongoing, with the ED scrutinizing Jagapathi Babu's financial transactions and potential links to the alleged scam.
The Sahiti Infra scam is a significant case, with the ED alleging that the company mobilized over ₹800 crore from prospective buyers through sales of inventory in projects launched without necessary permissions. The agency's probe has uncovered a complex web of financial irregularities, including diversion of funds and lack of escrow account systems. As the investigation continues, Jagapathi Babu's role in the scam remains under scrutiny.