Mumbai: Music label and film production banner T-Series on Friday issued a statement about the rape allegation levelled against its Chairman and Managing Director Bhushan Kumar. The statement claims that the complaint filed against Kumar is "completely false and malicious".

It further claims that the police complaint filed by the complainant is "nothing but a counter blast" to the complaint filed by T-Series on July 1 this year "against her and her accomplice for the offence of extortion".

The statement issued by T-Series reads: "The complaint filed against Mr. Bhushan Kumar is completely false and malicious and the contents of the same are denied. It has been falsely alleged that the lady in question was sexually exploited between 2017 to 2020 on the pretext of giving her work.

"It is a matter of record that she has already worked for T-Series banner in Film and music videos.

"Around March 2021 she approached Mr. Bhushan Kumar seeking help to fund one of the web-series which she wanted to produce, which was politely refused. Thereafter, In June 2021 after the lifting of lockdown in Maharashtra she started approaching T-Series banner in collusion with her accomplice demanding huge sum of money as extortion amount.

"Consequently, a complaint was filled by T-Series banner against the attempted extortion at with police at Amboli police station on 1st July 2021. We also have evidence in the form of audio recording for the extortion attempt and the same shall be provided to investigating agency. The present complaint filed by her is nothing but a counter blast to the complaint filed against her and her accomplice for the offence of extortion.

"We are in the process of consulting our lawyers in this regard and will take appropriate legal action," the statement concluded.

The Mumbai Police has registered an FIR filed by an aspiring model-cum-actress alleging rape by Bhushan Kumar, official sources said here on Friday.

According to an officer with the DN Nagar Police Station in Andheri, the 30-year-old victim has claimed in the FIR that she was sexually exploited and repeatedly raped by Bhushan Kumar between 2017 and 2020 under the false pretext of giving her roles in films.

(IANS)