Delhi court allows Jacqueline Fernandez to travel abroad for IIFA awards

A Delhi court on Tuesday, May 23 allowed Bollywood actor Jacqueline Fernandez, who is one of the accused in the Rs 200 crore money extortion case involving conman Sukesh Chandrasekhar, to fly abroad from May 25 to June 12. An application was moved by Jacqueline stating that she needed to travel to Abu Dhabi from May 25 to May 27 to attend  the International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) Awards and to travel Milan from May 28 to June 12 for a movie shoot.

Special Judge Shailendra Malik of Patiala House Courts granted her permission to fly abroad. On November 15, the court granted pre-arrest bail to Jacqueline. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) had recently filed its second supplementary charge sheet naming Jacqueline as an accused. On September 26, the court had granted interim protection from arrest to her.

Jacqueline and another Bollywood actor, Nora Fatehi, have recorded their statements as witnesses in the case. Earlier, assets and fixed deposits worth Rs 7.2 crore belonging to Jacqueline were attached by the ED, which termed these gifts and properties as "proceeds" of crime received by the actor.

In February, the ED had filed its first supplementary charge sheet against Pinky Irani, an alleged aide of Chandrashekhar, who introduced him to Bollywood actors. It had been alleged in the chargesheet that Pinky used to choose expensive gifts for Jacqueline and drop them at her residence after Chandrashekhar made the payments. In December 2021, the probe agency had filed the first charge sheet in this matter.

As per official sources, Chandrashekhar has spent around Rs 20 crore on different models and Bollywood celebrities. A few had refused to accept gifts from him.