Tollywood drugs case: ED seeks ‘missing’ audio & video recordings of actors

HYDERABAD: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has sought the ‘missing’ audio and video tapes of

Tollywood

actors which were recorded by the excise department while probing the Tollywood drug scandal in 2017.

The ED has sought the mobile phones seized of drug kingpin Calvin Mascarenhas and other accused. It has also sought the call data records (CDR) of Tollywood actors Charmee Kaur, Mumait khan, Ravi Teja, Tanish, Navadeep, P Venkata Subba Raju and other actors as well as director Puri Jagannath and cinematographer Shyam K Naidu.

Prohibition and excise department superintendent

Srinivas Rao

had issued a statement on August 20, 2021 that the statements were audio and video recorded. However, the audio and video recordings have not been made available to the ED.

The ED’s letter to the excise department has revealed that digital data connected to the Tollywood drugs scandal was neither submitted to the trial court nor to the ED.

Sources in the excise department said that the ED had sought 12 FIRs of 2017, which were later submitted. The FIRs were registered in 2017 at Balanagar, Charminar, Secunderabad and Nampally excise police stations. However, despite repeated requests, the digital data obtained by the prohibition and excise department during the investigation has not been given to the ED.

The ED has sought statements of the accused and witnesses’ recorded CDRs obtained by the excise department and copies of the seized mobile phones and hard disks. As the data is of the years 2017 and 2018, the ED has to rely on the excise department. As per the provision of sections 50 and 54 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, the excise department is obligated to provide the documents to the ED.

It has also asked the excise officials to submit original seized devices, a copy of the extracted data from the devices and a copy of forensic examination reports of the seized devices.

The excise department collected the call data records of several Tollywood actors and around 41 others to ascertain links of the arrested drug peddlers.

The ED has received the copies of the statements recorded from the trial court, but the call data records are missing. Since the CDRs are not available even after a gap of 2 years, the ED has now asked the excise department to provide the CDRs.

On August 30, 2021, the excise department in its reply to the ED had said that all statements, seized properties and other evidences, including digital, are in possession of the trial court.

However, the ED has alleged that this is ‘patently false’.


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