The Mumbai Special NDPS court on Thursday reserved order for 20 October on the bail application of Aryan Khan, Arbaaz Merchant and Munmun Dhamecha. Earlier today, in his final submission to the special NDPS court, Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Anil Singh argued that when considering a case under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, the scheme and the object of the Act must be taken into consideration. “When we are considering a case under an NDPS Act, the scheme and the object of the Act must be taken into consideration…because it’s affecting the nation. From time to time straight action is taken. NCB is working day and night and dealing with drugs in a serious manner,” said the ASG. “My four to five officers were beaten a few days back not in this case but another case, so I am saying it is affecting the society and college students in particular. The younger generation is the future of the country. It’s the land of Mahatma Gandhi, we should stop the circulation of the drug. We are looking into the chain, transition. We are in the primarily stage and it’s a case of conspiracy we are investigating,” he added.
On Wednesday, NCB in its reply filed in a special court said that its investigation has revealed Aryan Khan’s role in illicit procurement and distribution of contraband. The NCB further said that Aryan Khan used to procure drugs from Arbaz Khan. The special NDPS court is hearing a plea for bail to Aryan Khan, son of Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan arrested from a cruise off Mumbai during a raid by the agency, in which banned narcotics were seized. A total of 20 people, including two Nigerian nationals, have been arrested so far in the case related to the seizure of drugs following a raid at a party on the Cordelia cruise ship off the Mumbai coast on 2 October.
Aryan Khan and five other accused have been shifted to the common cell of the Mumbai’s Arthur Road Jail after their Covid report came negative, the superintendent of Arthur Road Jail said on Thursday. They were earlier lodged at the quarantine barrack of the Arthur Road Jail here.
Meanwhile, Pune City Police has issued a lookout notice for Kiran Gosavi, the man who made headlines after he was seen accosting Aryan Khan at the NCB office in a viral selfie. City police commissioner Amitabh Gupta said that the lookout notice was issued on Wednesday and bars him from going outside the country. Police said that Gosavi is wanted in a case registered with Pune city police in 2018, wherein a chargesheet has been submitted to the court. Gosavi was the witness in the NCB raid on the cruise ship off the Mumbai coast on 2 October.
Maharashtra Minister and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Nawab Malik had raised objections to Gosavi’s presence at the NCB office after the arrest of Aryan Khan in the drugs case. Meanwhile, the NCB had clarified that Gosavi was not an officer or employee of the agency.
Nawab Malik on Thursday said that the state government has upgraded his security arrangement after he allegedly got threat calls from various states due to his press conference last week. During a press conference today, Malik said, “BJP leaders have been targeting me by saying that I am defaming the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) to take revenge over the arrest of my son-in-law. Since the last press conference, which was held on 9 October, I have been getting threatening calls. This is why the state government upgraded my security.” “The NCB had arrested my son-in-law (Sameer Khan) earlier in July. When his house was raided by the NCB, there was no recovery but still there were rumours that ganja and drugs were recovered. It was done by NCB to defame me,” he said. “Hearing Khan’s bail application, the court released him in September. My whole family including my daughter was in trauma,” he said. Malik has been alleging a connection between the BJP and the NCB. Malik, earlier on Saturday, alleged that there exists a connection between the Zonal Director of NCB Mumbai unit and BJP leaders. Earlier, Malik also alleged that the investigating agency is trying to frame Bollywood megastar Shah Rukh Khan’s son Aryan Khan, and said that they should be ready for a legal battle.