MUMBAI: Bollywood actress Preity Zinta, who is also co-owner of Kings XI Punjab cricket team, has filed a police complaint against her former boyfriend and businessman Ness Wadia, alleging that he molested, abused and threatened her inside Wankhede stadium in south Mumbai.
The 39-year-old actress filed the police complaint on Thursday night alleging that she was molested by Wadia (44) inside Wankhede stadium on May 30, police sources at Marine Drive Police station said.
On May 30, an IPL match between Kings XI Punjab and Chennai Super Kings was played at the Wankhede stadium.
During the match, when Preity was at the Garware Pavillion, Ness reportedly accosted her and also bad mouthed her in front of many people.
She gave a written complaint following which an FIR was registered against Wadia under IPC sections 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty), 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace), 506 (punishment for criminal intimidation) and 509 (word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman), police sources added.
In the FIR it has been mentioned that Ness Wadia was harassing Preity Zinta despite their relationship having ended. The actress and the businessman had broken their five-year long relationship sometime back.
“I am shocked and dismayed. The allegations are totally false and baseless,” Wadia told TOI. He allso added that he was ‘disgusted’ to know that Preity Zinta could “stoop to such a level”. Wadia also told TV channels that it was impossible for him to assault Zinta as she is always ‘surrounded by bouncers’.
Zinta gave an application to the police on Thursday, which was converted into an FIR on Friday. Her full statements could not be recorded as she had to take a flight out of the city. “The actor claimed that she had to go out of the city and hence she could not approach the police earlier. As soon as she returned, she lodged a complaint,” a police officer said.
Zinta upset as Wadia was seeing someone: Report
Sources close to Zinta and Wadia said that he started seeing someone two months ago and they got close when the IPL was being played in the UAE. “Zinta could not digest the fact that her former boyfriend, who is still her business partner, was involved in another relationship,” said sources close to the Wadia camp.
They added, “His mother had to undergo serious discomfort when attending a Kings XI Punjab match resulting in an argument between the two. Zinta has been trying to garner publicity out of whatever is left of her relationship with Wadia.” (With inputs from PTI)