Bharat Shah moves court for CCCC release:

By Bollywood Hungama -

December 27, 2000 - 12:00 AM IST

The Empire strikes back. The real badshah of bollywood, Bharat Shah has filed his appearance before the special court hearing the Chori Chori Chupke Chupke case. The special court is examining the prosecution allegations of the producer Nazeem Rizvi being a part of the underworld and laundering illegal money through Bollywood. Shah filed a vakalatnama of his lawyers R M Aziz and Girish Kulkarni on behalf of his firm Mega Bollywood Pvt Ltd. However, he has not staked any claim or raised objection to the negatives of the film seized by the police on December 20 in his vakalatnama. Legal sources say that the release of the negatives of CCCC is possible provided the case is handled skillfully. The designated judge of the special court, A P Bhangale has ordered Shah to file written objections or stake his claim at the earliest if he so desired. The case is being tried under Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act. The judge has also ordered the prosecution to supply Shah a copy of the application made by police on the seizure of the film's negatives at Film City in suburban Goregaon. The police produced the seized negative prints of Rizvi's film Chori Chori Chupke Chupke before the judge on December 21. Subsequently as per the law, the judge directed that a public notice be issued in English and Marathi newspapers to invite within 15 days claims if any to the seized property. In case of no claims being released the court would be seized of the custody of the negatives and dispose it off therein under the Act. In case Bharat Shah is able to prove his claims to the negatives, the items would be released to his custody. However the police are apprehensive of this order, as their total case against Nazeem will collapse if Bharat Shah is able to prove his ownership of the negatives. The police is trying every trick in the book to ensure that Bharat Shah stays away from the negatives of CCCC.