Snehashish roy
Bollywood actor and entrepreneur Shilpa Shetty Kundra has publicly addressed swirling reports that her upscale restaurant chain Bastian was raided by Income Tax officials over alleged tax evasion. In a firm clarification issued through her legal team, Shetty rejected claims of any “raid” or wrongdoing, insisting the matter involves routine verification by tax authorities and dismissing suggestions of evasion or fraud as misinformed and defamatory.
The controversy began when several media reports suggested that Income Tax officials conducted search operations at Bastian outlets and possibly associated premises in cities including Mumbai and Bengaluru, targeting alleged irregularities in financial reporting and operations. These reports linked the action to a broader Rs 60-crore fraud and cheating case that also names Shetty and her husband, businessman Raj Kundra, though specific details of any charges remain unclear.
Responding to the storm of speculation, Shetty’s lawyer, Advocate Prashant Patil, issued a detailed statement emphasising that no “raid” of her residence, business premises, or restaurant has taken place. He clarified that what occurred was routine verification by Income Tax officials and not an enforcement action tied to any criminal investigation. The statement warned that anyone spreading claims linking Shetty to wrongdoing or casting the verification in a criminal light could face legal consequences for misinformation and defamation.
This clarification comes amid ongoing scrutiny of the Bastian brand, which Shetty co-owns and has helped popularise as one of Mumbai’s most talked-about restaurants. Earlier this year, the Bengaluru branch of Bastian was reportedly the subject of a police complaint under local laws for allegedly operating past legally permitted hours. Shetty had responded to that situation as well, urging fans and critics alike not to turn their enthusiasm into “toxic” speculation while assuring that she was cooperating with authorities as required.
The legal limelight intensified partly because of the existing Economic Offence Wing (EOW) case tied to alleged financial misconduct involving the actor and her husband. In that case, filed by a private investor, claims around Rs 60 crore were invested under certain assurances that have since become contested. Shetty’s lawyer has consistently maintained her innocence in that proceeding as well, noting that a quashing petition challenging the case is pending in the high court and expressing confidence that justice will prevail.
The public reaction to these developments reflects the tense intersection between celebrity, business, and law. Shilpa Shetty’s profile as a well-known actor means that even routine government procedures are likely to be magnified into speculative headlines and social-media chatter that sometimes strays from established facts. By pushing back hard against characterisations of enforcement activity as punitive or evidence of guilt, her statement attempts to draw a clearer distinction between compliance checks and criminal investigation.
For now, Shetty’s statement serves several purposes. It underlines her position that she is neither evading taxes nor engaged in unlawful conduct, it reinforces her intent to contest defamatory narratives, and it signals a preference for legal processes to be resolved without sensationalism. Whether the routine verification evolves into a broader enquiry remains unclear, but her legal team’s swift denial is intended to contain misinformation and preserve the credibility of both her business and public image.