'Blatant abuse of legal process': Director Shankar condemns ED action in 'Enthiran' plagiarism case

CHENNAI: The day after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) attached three of his immovable properties worth Rs 10.11 crore over plagiarism claims, related to his 2010 film 'Enthiran' (Robot), under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002,

Filmmaker S Shankar on Friday slammed the move as a "clear misuse of the legal process, as the Madras High Court had already dismissed the allegations.”

“The matter concerning these allegations was already thoroughly adjudicated by the high court in civil suit no. 914/2010,” Shankar said in a statement. “The court carefully examined the evidence and arguments from both sides, dismissing the claim filed by Aarur Tamil Nadan, which sought to declare him as the rightful copyright holder of the 'Enthiran' story.”

Despite this, the ED’s Chennai zonal office, provisionally attached three of his immovable properties, the filmmaker said, observing that the agency “relied on an independent report from the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) while ignoring the binding judgement of the high court.”

Shankar further stated that the private complaint referenced by the ED had already been stayed by the high court. "I am deeply disheartened by the continued action of the ED, despite a clear legal ruling from the civil court, which categorically stated that no copyright violation took place. This overreach represents a blatant abuse of the legal process," he expressed.

The filmmaker urged the authorities to reconsider their actions and said that if they fail to do so, he would have no choice but to appeal against the property attachment order.