Bhubaneswar: Odisha sextortion case prime accused Archana Nag’s erstwhile close associate Shradhanjali Behera has been asked to appear before the special Enforcement Directorate (ED) court in person.
The court has rejected Shradhanjali’s petition seeking permission to appear before it through her counsel and has directed her to depose before it May 8.
Meanwhile, the Enforcement Directorate named Shradhanjali as an accused in the honeytrap case.
Notably, Archana’s husband Jagabandhu was arrested October 21, 2022, after Shradhanjali lodged an FIR at Khandagiri police station October 2, 2022. She had accused Archana, Jagabandhu and their associate Khageswar Patra of trapping her in their racket, forcing her into prostitution to blackmail bigshots.
The ED is investigating the financial transactions of the honeytrap racket. Archana and her husband allegedly accumulated assets worth over Rs 30 crore in just four years by extorting money from influential persons through blackmail and honeytrap.
Previously, Orissa High Court had granted bail to Archana Nag April 12 in the alleged sextortion case involving film producer Akshay Parija. The case was registered at Nayapalli Police Station in Bhubaneswar September 30, 2022.
However, Archana will remain behind bars as two more cases are pending against her. The two cases pending against her include the ED case and the Shradhanjali case.
PNN