Surat: Sunanda Shetty, mother of actress Shilpa Shetty and prime accused in an alleged extortion case, on August 11 told police that she had called city-based saree dealer Pankaj Agarwal to settle the

financial dispute between them but denied "hiring" the underworld to recover the money.

"Sunanda admitted that she had indeed called Pankaj Agarwal to discuss about the payment of Rs two crore that he reportedly owed Shilpa for an Ad assignment. However, she said that no threats were involved and the invitation was purely business in nature," inspector D D Damor said at the end of her interrogation session in Umra police station.

The official said that she denied directly or indirectly contacting the underworld to extort the money.

"We questioned her on basis of statements of other accused and even asked her whether she knew the Malaysia-based gangster Fazlu Rehman and if at all she had contacted him. But Sunanda replied in the negative", Damor said. Though Sunanda has been granted permission to return to Mumbai, Chief Judicial Magistrate R P Mehta will hear her bail plea on August 13, the official said.

Shilpa's parents are facing the charge of "hiring" an underworld gangster to allegedly extort Rs 80 lakhs from Agarwal and Umra police claim to have in possession recorded conversation between Sunanda, Agarwal and a gangster in this regard.

Her parents, have however, denied any such conversation.

Police has already obtained voice samples of Sunanda and her husband Surendra Shetty, who is co- accused in the case, and sent them for test to forensic experts to confirm if they matched with the ones figuring in the alleged telephonic talk.

The official said spectography report was still awaited from FSL and more on that could be said only after the results were known.

PTI