"Rs 25 Crore Demanded From SRK's Family": CBI Files FIR Against Sameer Wakhende

• Image Credit: Google

• May 15, 2023 | Dhupali Das

Actor Shah Rukh Khan's family was threatened that his son Aryan would be framed in a narcotics case if they didn't pay Rs 25 crore...

Digital Desk: Actor Shah Rukh Khan's family was threatened that his son Aryan would be framed in a narcotics case if they didn't pay Rs 25 crore, according to the FIR filed by the CBI against Sameer Wankhede, former zonal director of the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB).

Wankhede, who made headlines after the arrest of Aryan Khan and others in an alleged drug burst on a cruise ship off Mumbai in October 2021, is accused of corruption and criminal misconduct.

The CBI has raised red flags in their FIR regarding the officer's overseas trips as well as the sale and acquisition of expensive wristwatches.

The FIR claims that investigations into the charges against Wankhede and Ashish Ranjan, then intelligence officers with NCB, "could not adequately justify their acquired assets as per their declared income." It added that Wankhede "had not adequately explained his foreign visits and had seemingly mis-declared the expenditure on his foreign travels."

Apart from Wankhede, the FIR names four other suspects. These individuals include Vishwa Vijay Singh and Ashish Ranjan, both senior officers with the NCB at the time, and KP Gosavi and his aide Sanvile D'Souza.

KP Gosavi is a witness in the drugs-on-cruise case whose selfie with Aryan Khan after his arrest raised concerns about how someone who did not work for NCB was given access to the accused.

According to the FIR filed by the CBI, Gosavi "was allowed to be present in the company of the accused and even permitted to come to the NCB office after the raid, which is contrary to the norms for an independent witness." "In this manner, KP Gosavi took advantage of his freedom, clicked selfies, and recorded the voice note of an accused," it added.

The FIR claims a conspiracy to "extort a sum of 25 crores from the family members of the alleged 'accused," Aryan Khan, by threatening them with the accusation of offences of possession of narcotic substances. "This sum was eventually settled at 18 crore. KP Gosavi and his aide Sanville D'Souza also took a token sum of 50 lakhs as bribe money, but afterward refunded a portion of this amount," the FIR says.

The CBI claims that Wankhede asked NCB superintendent Vishwa Vijay Singh to "let KP Gosavi deal with the accused while taking him to NCB office thus giving a freehand to KP Gosavi and others in order to present a visual impression that KP Gosavi has the custody of the accused and is escorting/dragging him towards the NCB Mumbai office" in order to trigger the arrest.

Many of these allegations were made earlier by former Maharashtra minister and NCP leader Nawab Malik, who is currently in jail on charges of corruption, and Prabhakar Sail, a witness in the drugs-on-cruise case who died of a heart attack last year.

Last year, Wankhede was transferred to Chennai's Directorate General of Taxpayer Services. Following recent CBI raids on his home, he claimed that he was "punished for being a patriot." "I am being honoured for being a patriot; yesterday, 18 CBI officials raided my home and searched it for more than 12 hours while my wife and children were present. They found Rs. 23,000 and four property papers. These assets were purchased prior to my enlistment in the service," Wankhede claimed.

After his arrest, Aryan Khan spent 22 days in jail before the NCB absolved him of all charges, stating a "lack of adequate evidence." In the midst of the outstanding rage, a secondary investigation into the accusations against Wankhede and his group was initiated.