On May 30, 2025, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) issued a decisive order barring Bollywood actor Arshad Warsi, his spouse Maria Goretti, and 57 others from participating in the stock markets for a period ranging from one to five years. The action comes in response to a deceptive stock promotion scheme involving Sadhna Broadcast Ltd, now known as Crystal Business System Ltd.

The capital markets watchdog penalized Arshad and Maria with a fine of ₹5 lakh each. Their market participation was suspended for one year. A broader set of 57 individuals and companies, including the company’s promoters, faced fines ranging from ₹5 lakh to ₹5 crore.

According to SEBI’s comprehensive 109-page final report, these entities were involved in a pump-and-dump scheme. Arshad reportedly gained ₹41.70 lakh, while Maria earned ₹50.35 lakh through the fraudulent trades.

The operation was led by Gaurav Gupta, Rakesh Kumar Gupta, and Manish Mishra, with Subhash Aggarwal, a director at the registrar and transfer agent of Sadhna Broadcast, serving as the liaison between Mishra and the promoters.

Others involved included Peeyush Agarwal, a dealer at Choice Broking, and Lokesh Shah, a Delhi-based franchise owner, who allegedly enabled the usage of their accounts for manipulative purposes. Jatin Shah was identified as a key executor of the fraud.

SEBI found that the fraudulent activity unfolded in two phases. Initially, interconnected and promoter-linked accounts conducted internal trades to artificially inflate stock prices. Despite small volumes, the illiquid nature of the stock allowed for price manipulation with minimal trades.

In the second stage, misleading investment videos were posted on YouTube channels such as Moneywise, The Advisor, and Profit Yatra, run by Manish Mishra. These videos falsely promoted SBL as a lucrative investment, syncing with the inflated market activity to lure retail investors.

SEBI has directed all 59 entities to return illegal gains worth ₹58.01 crore, along with 12% annual interest. However, Varun Media Pvt Ltd, a promoter firm undergoing insolvency, has been spared from a fine but must still return the profits earned.

This action followed complaints received between July and September 2022, leading to SEBI’s investigation of suspicious trading activities from March 8 to November 30, 2022. An interim order had already been issued on March 2, 2023, targeting 31 of the entities involved.