Sameer Wankhede, a former zonal director of the Narcotics Control Bureau, was questioned by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in Mumbai on Saturday, in connection with a case in which he is accused of demanding a Rs 25 crore bribe from superstar Shah Rukh Khan for not implicating his son Aryan in the Cordelia cruise ‘drug bust’ case, an official said.
Around 10.15 am, he arrived at the CBI office in the Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC).
He just said “Satyamev Jayate” (truth alone prevails) to reporters as he entered the agency office. The former NCB official had been summoned by the CBI to appear for questioning in connection with the case on Thursday, but he did not.
In response to a complaint from the NCB, the central agency detained Wankhede and four other individuals on May 11 for an alleged criminal conspiracy, the threat of extortion, and provisions related to bribery under the Prevention of Corruption Act.
On Friday, the Indian Revenue Service (IRS) officer approached the Bombay High Court seeking quashing of the FIR. The high court subsequently ordered the CBI to refrain from taking “coercive action” against Wankhede till May 22.
As a result of the alleged drug seizure on board the Cordelia cruise liner, the NCB detained Aryan Khan on October 3, 2021. Three weeks later, the high court granted him bail because the anti-drugs agency was unable to support its charges against him.
The NCB’s Mumbai zone allegedly obtained information in October 2021 about numerous people using and possessing narcotics on the cruise ship, and certain NCB officers allegedly planned to extort bribes from the accused in exchange for clearing them.
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