Notice to Tollywood actor Mahesh Babu; 'SSMB29' actor asked to appear in case

HYDERABAD: Telugu star Mahesh Babu has been served a notice by the Telangana Consumer Commission in a real estate scam case. This is in response to a complaint filed by a doctor against a real estate company advertised by Mahesh Babu. The case is being heard by the Rangareddy District Consumer Commission. The commission has issued a notice and asked Mahesh Babu to appear in the case.

A Hyderabad-based female doctor and another person have filed a complaint with the Consumer Commission against the real estate company 'Sai Surya Developers'. They allege in their complaint that they paid Rs 34.80 lakh each for purchasing a plot in a project started by the company in Balapur. The complainants point out that Mahesh Babu was the promoter of the project and that they paid the money on the basis of a brochure with his photo. They say that they later came to know that the company did not have any land there and that they had been cheated.

The complainants had approached the company owner Kancharla Satish Chandragupta demanding a refund. He paid only Rs 15 lakh in installments. When pressed for the remaining money, the owner refused and that is why they approached the commission, the complaint states.

The ED had earlier issued a notice to Mahesh Babu to appear in the same case on April 27. The actor informed the ED that he could not come as he was shooting abroad. The date was then changed. The company paid the actor Rs 5.9 crore as remuneration. Out of this, Rs 2.5 crore was paid in cash. This is a violation of the Exchange Act. The ED suspects that this move is aimed at laundering black money. Subsequently, Mahesh Babu was issued a notice to appear for questioning.

A film in which Mahesh Babu and director Rajamouli are teaming up is in the making. The film also stars Prithviraj Sukumaran and Priyanka Chopra. The shooting of the film is progressing under the temporary title SSMB29.