Veteran South and Bollywood actor and former Member of Parliament, Jaya Prada has been sentenced to six months jail by the Egmore metropolitan magistrate court in an old case as per reports. The order was issued in response to allegations of failing to pay the Employees State Insurance (ESI) funds for the workers employed at a cinema theatre she owned in Chennai. Reportedly, a fine of Rs 5,000 has also been imposed on her in connection to the case. It is also reported that her business partners Ram Kumar and Raja Babu are also found guilty.
It so happened that the theatre owned by Jaya got shut down. Later, the theatre workers lodged a complaint against her for not paying the ESI money for the workers which was deducted from their salaries. They alleged that the ESI money was not paid to the Government Insurance Corporation.
Reportedly, The Labour Government Insurance Corporation filed a case against Jaya Prada and her partners at the Egmore Magistrate Court in Chennai. It is said that she admitted to the charges and promised to clear the payment of the workers and also sought dismissal of the case. However, the court refused her appeal and imposed a fine and imprisonment for six months.
Jaya was a popular actress of her time. She left acting and joined Telugu Desam Party (TDP) in 1994. She became a Rajya Sabha MP and then a Lok Sabha MP. In 2019, she joined Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
