A Mumbai court on Friday rejected the plea of a 25-year-old woman seeking a DNA test of the BJP's Gorakhpur candidate and actor Ravi Kishan, claiming that the latter was her biological father.
The court's verdict came a week after Aparna Soni, a Mumbai resident, claimed that the actor-politician had fathered her daughter, Shinova.
During the hearing today, the Dindoshi Sessions Court in Mumbai said there was no prima facie case suggesting that a relation existed between Aparna Soni and Ravi Kishan.
In the court on Thursday, Shinova claimed that although she calls the actor "chachu" (uncle), he was actually her biological father.
However, lawyer Ameet Mehta, appearing for Ravi Kishan, argued that there was no relationship between him and Aparna Soni.
Mehta acknowledged that the actor knew Aparna Soni, but only as good friends as they both worked in the film industry.
The lawyer stressed that the two were never in a relationship.
Shinova's plea, argued by advocate Ashok Saraogi, sought the paternity test as an interim measure.
Saraogi submitted that Aparna Soni married Rajesh Soni in 1991. But due to some disputes and differences, she left her matrimonial home sometime in 1995.
He said that Aparna Soni connected with the film industry in her capacity as a journalist, after which she and Ravi Kishan allegedly fell in love and started a relationship.
After Shinova's birth, the actor had been taking care of her, but in the last few years, he started denying their relationship and ended support, the lawyer said.
Saraogi said that since Ravi Kishan had refused to accept Shinova as his biological daughter, a paternity test was required to ascertain the truth.
Addressing a press conference in Lucknow on April 16, Aparna Soni, aka Aparna Thakur, claimed that Ravi Kishan Shinova's biological father and alleged that the actor was denying his daughter's rights.
Following this, Ravi Kishan’s wife, Preeti Shukla filed an FIR against Aparna Soni and Shinova in Lucknow, based on which the police lodged an FIR against six individuals -- Aparna Soni, her husband Rajesh Soni, daughter Shinova, son Saunak Soni, Samajwadi Party leader Vivek Kumar Pandey, and a journalist Khurshid Khan who runs a YouTube channel.
They have been charged under sections IPC Sections 120b, 195, 386, 388, 504 and 506.
In her complaint, Preeti Shukla alleged that Aparna Soni threatened her with her connections to the underworld
