Odisha Sun Times Bureau
Bhubaneswar, Jun 11:

The Opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) today demanded the arrest of four actor-turned-politicians from the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) for promoting a chit fund firm whose chairman-cum-CMD was arrested from New Delhi yesterday.

BJP-press-meet samir mohanty

Accusing the BJD of having chit fund link, the vice president of BJP Sameer Mohanty said: “Whether it was a cultural programme or a chit fund firm organised programme, the actors had promoted them owing which the general public and small investors were influenced to invest money. Prabhas Chandra Rout had looted these investments. MP Siddhant Mohapatra, MP Anubhav Mohanty, MLA Akash Das Nayak and MLA candidate in last election Pappu Pom Pom alias Tatwa Prakash Satapathy are the leaders of the ruling party and have promoted the chit fund company. They should be brought under the purview of investigation and arrested.”

Reacting to this, BJD spokesperson Amar Prasad Satapathy said: “How would an actor know about the source of money of a film producer? This is unfair to drag BJD into this.”

“I would like to clarify that I haven’t done any movie under the banner of that chit fund firm. Moreover, I don’t know the chairman of the company personally. I had come to know about him through newspapers and television. As Sameer Mohanty has raked up my name, he should tell which movie have I done with the company. He should not level such allegation without any proper information. As far as actors are concerned, how would they know that the money invested in the movies are black or white. In my view, the Ollywood industry should be shut down and movies from industries where white money is invested should be screened here,” actor-turned-politician Akash Das Nayak said in his reply to Sameer Mohanty’s allegations.

Notably, several actors from the regional film industry have been subjected to criticism for working under the production companies backed by chit fund companies in the state.

The Ollywood-chit fund companies’ nexus has now taken the centerstage and has become a talking point with the arrest of Maa Tarini Eastcon Pvt Ltd chief Niranjan Rana and Oscar chit fund firm chairman Prabhas Chandra Rout in recent times.