NEW DELHI: Actor Nora Fatehi on Monday gave her statement before a Delhi Court in connection with a defamation complaint against actor Jacqueline Fernandez and more than a dozen media outlets.
The complaint is in connection with the alleged defamatory remarks made against her in the Rs 200-crore extortion case linked to ‘millionaire conman’ Sukesh Chandrashekhar.
Appearing before the Metropolitan Magistrate Kapil Gupta at Patiala House Court in the national capital, Nora stated that the respondents-- Jacqueline and 15 media houses have ruined her reputation in the public eye through false narratives.
"They have called me a gold digger and accused me of having a relationship with a con artist Sukesh Chandrasekhar," it was stated.
"This has caused me a loss of financial gain and reputation. The reason why I have filed this case is because of the ongoing ED case against Sukesh who was accused of conning a sum of Rs 200 crore that I have nothing to do with and neither do I know anything," she said.
Fatehi, in her statement, said she feels that she has been used as a scapegoat in the case.
"I feel that I have been used as a scapegoat in this case in the media to safeguard certain people and because I am an outsider and I have been taken as a soft target and I want compensation for all the damages caused to my career," it was stated.
After recording her statement, the court said the statement of another witness in the case will be later recorded in September.
In December last year, Fatehi had moved the defamation case following the remarks of Jacqueline who has reportedly said that Nora Fatehi also received gifts from Sukesh Chandrashekhar, among other things.
"The defamatory imputations were made by Accused No 1 (Jacqueline) due to malicious reasons. Apart from that she also sought to criminally defame the complainant in order to destroy her career to further her own interests, since they are both working in the same industry and have similar backgrounds, among other reasons," Fatehi's complaint said.
Both the actresses are of foreign origin and both have had their share of struggles in rising to fame in the Indian film industry, it was stated, adding " it is evident that the act of the accused no 1 dragging the name of the complainant wherein she had no business mentioning the complainant is mala fide in nature. The nature of her mala fide intentions herein is made apparent by the fact the accused no 1 views the complainant as her rival competing for the same industry considering their shared trajectory."
In the complaint, Fatehi said the only time she spoke to the conman was when his wife Leena Maria Paul made her speak to him over speakerphone at the event in Chennai which she was invited by Leena. At the event, the complainant was gifted an iPhone and a Gucci bag by Leena Maria Paul, and no gifts were ever received by the complainant from Sukesh, she claimed.