The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has registered a corruption case against five persons, including former Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) officer Sameer Wankhede. They are booked for seeking a bribe of Rs 25 crore from the owners of the Cordelia ship.
The Cordelia ship is where actor Shah Rukh Khan’s son Aryan Khan was taken into custody in an alleged narcotics case.
During the Cordelia cruise drug raid, Wankhede, an IRS officer, was the chief of the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) Mumbai zone. On the night of October 2, 2021, he led a squad of officers including Vishwa Vijay Singh, to raid the Cordelia ship.
CBI officers told the media that Mr. Wankhede and others allegedly requested a fee of Rs 25 crore for not incriminating Aryan Khan in the purported drug bust.
According to CBI sources, they have filed a FIR and are conducting raids in 29 cities, including Delhi, Mumbai, Ranchi, and Kanpur.
The NCB claimed to have confiscated 13 grammes of cocaine, five grammes of mephedrone, 21 grammes of marijuana, 22 pills of MDMA (ecstasy), and Rs 1.33 lakh in cash during the raid, after which 17 people were arrested, including Aryan Khan.
The Bombay High Court eventually granted Aryan Khan bail on October 28. Eventually, another NCB team that investigated the case dropped the charge against him, citing insufficient evidence.
Vijay Singh was also dismissed in connection to another case
The NCB fired its superintendent, Vishwa Vijay Singh, who was part of the crew who stormed the Cordelia cruise ship and detained Aryan Khan, last week. According to NCB officials, Singh was fired in connection with another instance in which he was suspended in April 2022 and an investigation was requested. Singh was dismissed after considering the conclusions of the inquiry report, according to officials.
Previously, a Special Investigation Team (SIT) formed by the anti-drugs agency alleged that the investigation led by Mr Wankhede had flaws.
The NCB’s Mumbai team was subjected to a vigilance investigation, which was finished in November 2022. Based on the findings of the investigation, departmental action was taken against seven officers, the identities of whom were not revealed.