Former NCB director Sameer Wankhede vehemently denies demanding a bribe from Shah Rukh Khan to clear Aryan Khan's name in the 2021 drugs case, as his lawyer argues lack of evidence in Bombay High Court.
Key Points
- Sameer Wankhede denies demanding or accepting a bribe from Shah Rukh Khan in the Aryan Khan drugs case.
- Wankhede's lawyer argues the CBI lacks evidence to prove bribery allegations against the former NCB director.
- The CBI FIR alleges Wankhede and others demanded ₹25 crore to give Aryan Khan a clean chit.
- The Bombay High Court is continuing to hear Wankhede's plea to quash the CBI FIR against him.
- The Enforcement Directorate has also registered a money laundering case against Wankhede based on the CBI's FIR.
Former Narcotics Control Bureau Mumbai zonal director Sameer Wankhede told the Bombay high court on Monday that he never demanded or took a bribe from actor Shah Rukh Khan to spare his son Aryan Khan following the latter's arrest in a cruise drugs case.
Wankhede's counsel, Aabad Ponda, was arguing the Indian Revenue Service officer's plea seeking to quash the FIR registered against him in May 2023 by the Central Bureau of Investigation on charges of corruption and bribery.
Ponda told a bench of Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar and Justice Suman Shyam that Wankhede never demanded or took a bribe from Shah Rukh Khan.
As per the CBI FIR, Wankhede and the other accused in the case allegedly demanded Rs 25 crore from the actor to give a clean chit to his son in the drugs case.
However, Ponda told the court on Monday that the CBI has no evidence to establish that Wankhede demanded or received any bribe.
The Narcotics Control Bureau had received a tip-off about alleged drugs on the cruise ship Cordelia. A search was conducted in accordance with the law and a few persons, including Aryan Khan, were arrested, the counsel added.
The high court said it would continue hearing the plea further on Tuesday.
Legal Proceedings and Charges
The CBI had registered the case against Wankhede and others on charges of criminal conspiracy (Indian Penal Code section 120-B), and threat of extortion (388 IPC), as well as bribery under the Prevention of Corruption Act on a complaint from the NCB.
Aryan Khan was arrested in the alleged drug bust case on the Cordelia cruise ship on October 2, 2021.
Later, the NCB filed a charge sheet in the case against 14 accused, but gave a clean chit to Aryan Khan.
Background of the Case
The much-hyped case took a twist in 2021 when an 'independent witness' claimed that an NCB official and other persons, including a witness, demanded Rs 25 crore to let off Aryan Khan.
The NCB later conducted an internal vigilance probe against Wankhede and others and shared the contents with the CBI, leading to the registration of the case against him.
Based on the CBI's FIR, the Enforcement Directorate also registered a case against Wankhede, accusing him of money laundering.
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