Actor Akshay Kumar has served a Rs 500-crore defamation notice against a YouTuber from Bihar who had allegedly named him in the Sushant Singh Rajput case, as per a report by mid-day.
The YouTuber from Bihar, Rashid Siddiqui, has been accused of running hate campaigns by publishing fake stories regarding the death of Sushant Singh Rajput.
Investigations have reportedly revealed that Siddiqui earned over Rs 15 lakhs from his content in four months. Advocate Dharmendra Mishra of the Shiv Sena's legal cell had filed a case against Siddiqui, who owns the channel 'FF News'.
The police have filed a case on charges of defamation, public mischief and intentional insult. The court has granted Siddiqui anticipatory bail. As per the report by mid-day, the YouTuber's posts against the Mumbai Police, Maharashtra government, Aaditya Thackeray and Akshay Kumar were viewed by lakhs of people.
In connection with Akshay Kumar, Siddiqui had reportedly claimed that the actor was unhappy with Sushant having bagged the lead role in MS Dhoni.
He also allegedly claimed that Kumar arranged for secret meetings with the Mumbai Police and Aaditya Thackeray regarding Rajput's death and even helped the late actor's partner Rhea Chakraborty escape to Canada.
A senior IPS officer told mid-day that Sushant Singh Rajput's death was used by several people to make money. "As many people were curious about the case, Sushant's death was misused by several to make money. Once the media started reporting different theories, YouTubers jumped on the opportunity and started posting fake content. By maligning the Mumbai Police's reputation they earned a lot of money".
As per the police, Siddiqui earned Rs 6.5 lakh in September.
Sushant Singh Rajput passed away on 14 June.
(With inputs from mid-day)
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