Ekta, Shobha Kapoor Address POCSO Case Filed Against Them For ‘Gandi Baat’

Ekta Kapoor and her mother, Shobha Kapoor, have officially addressed the case registered against them under the POCSO Act for alleged inappropriate content in the web series Gandii Baat on ALTBalaji. In a statement released on Tuesday, October 22 through ALTBalaji’s official Instagram account, they denied any involvement in the issue, stating they are "not involved in the day-to-day operations" of the company.

Ekta And Shobha Kapoor Address POCSO Case For ‘Gandi Baat’

The statement emphasised that ALT Digital Media Entertainment Ltd. is fully compliant with all applicable laws, including the POCSO Act, and firmly refuted any claims involving minors. It further clarified that both Shobha and Ekta Kapoor are not engaged in the day-to-day management of the platform, which is handled by separate teams, including content strategy.

Additionally, the company expressed its trust in the judiciary, stating, "The company has complete faith in the judiciary and is fully cooperating with the authorities in the investigation. Since the matter is subjudice, the company refrains from commenting further."

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This follows an interrogation by Mumbai Police, who had earlier booked Ekta and Shobha Kapoor under the POCSO Act for allegedly depicting inappropriate scenes involving minors in Gandii Baat. The police questioned the duo on Monday, October 21 and asked them to appear again for further questioning on October 24.

Ekta Kapoor, Mother Shobha Booked Under POCSO Act For Objectionable Scenes In ‘Gandi Baat’

The case has been registered at Mumbai's MHB police station under sections 295-A of the IPC, the IT Act, and sections 13 and 15 of the POCSO Act. The web series, which aired on ALT Balaji between February and April 2021, has since removed the controversial episode from its platform. However, there has been no official statement from Ekta Kapoor or her team on the matter yet.

In a similar incident from 2022, a local court in Bihar’s Begusarai issued arrest warrants on September 28, based on a 2020 complaint filed by ex-serviceman Shambhu Kumar. He alleged that XXX Season 2, a web series produced by Ekta, contained objectionable scenes involving a soldier’s wife.

Responding to reports of the arrest warrants, Ekta's lawyer dismissed the claims as untrue. The lawyer stated, "In the recent past, there have been news articles alleging the issuance of arrest warrants by a Magistrate Court in Begusarai, Bihar against Ms Ekta Kapoor and Mrs. Shobha Kapoor. These news articles which appear to have been made based on alleged statements of the advocate for the individual who has filed the complaint are false and inaccurate as no arrest warrants have been received by Ms. Ekta Kapoor or Mrs. Shobha Kapoor." This clarification was reported by IndiaToday.in. 

Returning to Gandii Baat, an Indian adult comedy web series directed by Sachin Mohite originally premiered in 2018 on ZEE5, ALTBalaji, and MX Player. However, due to its explicit adult content, the series has now been removed from platforms following the implementation of the Indian government's new OTT platform regulations.

In other news, Ekta's latest drama film Love, Sex aur Dhokha 2 (LSD 2), directed by Dibakar Banerjee, hit theatres on April 19.