Actor Kadambari’s rape case against industrialist shut due to lack of evidence

Mumbai-based actor Kadambari Jethwani made headlines on Friday after three senior police officers in Andhra Pradesh were suspended for the wrongful arrest and custody of the actor and her family members. The officers, including Andhra Pradesh’s intelligence chief, allegedly attempted to frame her in a false case, displaying disregard for standard investigative protocols, according to their suspension orders.
Amid these, details of another case, in which Kadambari accused industrialist Sajjan Jindal of rape, have emerged. According to details accessed by India Today, Kadambari filed a complaint against Jindal, alleging rape, and a case was registered in December 2023 in Mumbai.
However, a probe concluded that the case was ‘unsubstantial’, and the investigation was closed with the conclusion that “no crime had occurred”.
In her complaint to the police, Kadambari claimed that in January 2022, Jindal raped her at his penthouse in Mumbai’s Bandra Kurla Complex.
A probe was initiated, but police, after gathering testimonies from witnesses present at the location where the alleged incident took place, along with other evidence collected during the investigation, concluded that “no wrongdoing occurred with the woman”.
The Mumbai Police’s closure report also noted that the complainant did not appear to record her statement, despite the police repeatedly requesting her to do so.
Alleging that Kadambari had attempted to frame Sajjan Jindal for a “false crime”, the police requested a magistrate court to grant a summary judgment. A summary judgment is a court ruling made without a trial when there is no genuine dispute about the essential facts of the case, allowing for a swift resolution based on the legal merits.
A senior Mumbai Police officer privy to the investigation into the December case against Sajjan Jindal told India Today TV that the court had accepted the closure report, and no objections had been filed against it.
When asked about the recent events, the officer said, “We have no idea about the arrest of the complainant.”
Kadambari and her family members were arrested on February 2, 2024, from their residence in Mumbai following a complaint by YSR Congress Party leader and film producer KVR Vidyasagar, who accused them of forgery and extortion.
It was alleged that the arrest was based merely on verbal orders from senior police officers, who have now been suspended. The actor and her family were taken to Vijayawada, allegedly on the instructions of state police intelligence chief P. Sitharama Anjaneyulu, where they reportedly spent 42 days.
The suspended officers include P Sitharama Anjaneyulu, ex-intelligence chief (DG rank), Kranti Rana Tata, former Vijayawada Police Commissioner, and Vishal Gunni, then Deputy Commissioner of Police (Vijayawada).
The family was reportedly held in police custody and threatened with prolonged imprisonment. They were also asked to sign several documents and blank papers.
According to sources, even before an FIR was registered at the Vijayawada police station, tickets had been booked for police officials to travel to Mumbai to arrest Kadambari and her family. Sources further revealed that producer Rao was also arrested on Friday.
Kadambari had filed a complaint with the Director General of Andhra Pradesh Police, after which the issue was taken up and action was initiated.