The co-founder of Indian Ocean, Susmit Sen, filed a police complaint against Rahul Ram and Amit Kilam, accusing them of criminal conspiracy, breach of trust, defrauding, misappropriation, falsifying accounting, among other offences. The band members have reacted to the accusation.
Rahul and Amit issued an official statement in which they said they were saddened to hear through the media that their former bandmate had lodged a police complaint against them. However, they said that they would be cooperating with the police. “We are saddened to learn from the media that a police complaint has been filed against us by Susmit Sen (Former member of Indian Ocean) and Sunita Chakravorty (Spouse of former Indian Ocean member Asheem Chakravorty). We have not seen a copy of the complaint as yet and thus cannot address it on its merits,” the official statement said.
The statement from Rahul N Ram and Amit Kilam further added that there is a pending matter in the NCLT (National Company Law Tribunal) between the shareholders for over a year. “That case is still in process, and thus everything therein is sub-judice. It is thus quite a surprise to us that a police complaint has been filed with what appears to be the same issue considered by NCLT. Filing a criminal complaint on what is evidently a civil law issue seems to be an afterthought and to arm twist us to agree to their illegal and unwarranted demands,” it stated.
The statement from Rahul and Amit is in response to a Delhi police complaint that Susmit submitted on August 16. “We shall cooperate fully with the police in any enquiry they choose to carry out. We are quite aware that the complaints are essentially frivolous and mala fide and completely confident about the legality of all procedures carried out by us,” the official statement added.
Indian Ocean is a 1990-formed Indian rock band based in New Delhi. At first, Rahul Ram, Amit Kilam, Asheem Chakravarty and Susmit Sen made up the band. The band is recognised as the pioneers of the fusion rock genre in India.