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Journalism of Courage
Former bar dancer Tarannum, now in Jaipur, has gone from being distraught and disbelieving to ‘‘penniless’’.
Claiming to have ‘‘been reduced to a pauper’’ after the police froze her bank accounts pending an investigation into her allegedly illegal assets, Tarannum sounded tearful on Thursday. ‘‘I was planning to use that money to start a business after the ban came into effect,’’ she said. ‘‘Anyway, soon after talking with reporters on Wednesday night, I left for Jaipur… I took one of the cheaper flights, since I’m now living off borrowed money.’’
Tarannum denied links with the underworld. ‘‘I was just 16 in 1997, when I supposedly performed in Dubai when Dawood was in the audience. I didn’t even know his name,’’ she said.
Tarannum also repeated her claim that she earned the Rs 22 lakh discovered during an I-T raid—and the Rs 7 lakh she spent on jewellery—while working as a bar dancer. ‘‘Moreover, I have no London-based brother who arranged for my recent bets during the Ashes series,’’ she said. ‘‘I have a brother who is very much here and who knows nothing about gambling.’’
Tarannum plans to live with her sister and brother in Jaipur; she won’t return to Mumbai for at least 10 days. ‘‘Here, no one recognises me and I don’t have to wear a burqa every time I step out of the house,’’ she said. ‘‘I have informed the Mumbai Police I was leaving the city.”
