Surat, June 21: A local court today deferred till June 24 the bail plea of Sunanda Shetty, mother of actress Shilpa Shetty, in a case of alleged extortion on health ground even as her husband and co-accused, Surendra, was produced for remand. Sunanda's lawyer urged the chief judicial magistrate R P Mehta to adjourn the bail plea of his client as she had been admitted to a hospital in Mumbai for treatment of an ailment.

Accordingly, the court deferred the matter to June 24.

Meanwhile, Sunanda's husband and co-accused was produced before a court today for remand in the same case. The court heard arguments on the plea made by police for seeking his remand. The hearing was inconclusive and the matter would be decided this evening, sources said.
Surendra was taken into custody soon after his surrender before Umra police yesterday.

On June 18, Gujarat High Court had asked Surendra to surrender after he withdrew his anticipatory bail petition.

Umra police had registered a case against Surendra, his wife Sunanda and two gangsters on the charge of allegedly extorting money from Pankaj Agarwal, the owner of Prafful Sarees, to recover Rs 80 lakh dues payable to Shilpa for appearing in an advertising film for the company.
Police also claimed to have in their possession tape recorded telephone talks between Shilpa's parents and Agarwal which allegedly reveal that the latter was threatened. Both Sunanda and Surendra had denied the charge saying the telephone talks were concocted.

Bureau Report