ED summons actor Mahesh Babu in Hyderabad real estate money laundering probe

Telugu film star Mahesh Babu has been summoned by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with a money laundering investigation involving Hyderabad-based real estate firms.

The 49-year-old actor has been asked to appear before the ED’s Hyderabad office on April 28.

The summons comes days after the agency conducted raids at multiple locations across the city as part of its probe into real estate groups Surana Group and Sai Surya Developers.

The investigation, under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), centers on allegations of delays and defaults in real estate project deliveries.

One of the key projects under scrutiny is 'Green Meadows,' developed by Sai Surya Developers.

The company’s owner, Kancharla Satish Chandra Gupta, is under police investigation for alleged failure to deliver the project as promised. Mahesh Babu served as the brand ambassador for the project.

Sources familiar with the investigation said Mahesh Babu is not currently being treated as an accused.

"He may have endorsed the real estate projects of the accused companies without knowing about the alleged fraud," one source said.

The ED is reportedly reviewing transactions totaling ₹5.9 crore—paid to the actor through cheques and cash—as part of the endorsement deal.

The agency’s case is based on a complaint filed by Telangana Police against Satish Chandra Gupta, proprietor of Sai Surya Developers; Narendra Surana, director of Bhagyanagar Properties Ltd.; and others.

They are accused of defrauding investors by collecting advance payments for plots under fraudulent pretenses.

According to the ED, the accused ran schemes involving unauthorized land layouts, duplicate sales of the same plots, collection of payments without formal agreements, and misleading promises about plot registration.

"By cheating the general public with predetermined and dishonest intention, they generated proceeds of crime, which were diverted and laundered for wrongful gain to themselves and related entities," the ED said in an official release following the raids.