Court sends Aryan Khan, others to NCB custody till 7 October

Mumbai’s Esplanade Court on Monday sent Vikrant Chhoker, Ismeet Singh, Nupur Sarika, Gomit Chopra and Mohak Jaswal to Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) custody till 7 October. This came after the court sent Aryan Khan, Arbaz Seth Merchant and Munmun Dhamecha to NCB custody till 7 October. All the eight accused, arrested after a Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) raid on a cruise ship off the Mumbai coast, were taken to the city court on Monday.

They were accused in connection with a drug seizure on a cruise ship off the Mumbai coast. An NCB team busted an alleged drugs party on the Cordelia Cruise ship which was on its way to Goa at mid-sea on Saturday night. Eight persons were detained for questioning by the NCB in connection with the drug seizure on the cruise ship, according to NCB zonal director Sameer Wankhede. All of the eight persons were later arrested on Sunday.

As per the NCB, three persons had been booked under Section 8C, 20B, 27 (Punishment for consumption of any narcotic drug or psychotropic substance) and 35 (Presumption of culpable mental state) of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (NDPS Act).

Section 8C of NDPS Act refers to prohibition to produce, manufacture, possess, sell, purchase, transport, warehouse, use, consume, import inter-State, export inter-State, import into India, export from India or tranship any narcotic drug or psychotropic substance while Section 20B deals with punishment for producing, manufacturing, possessing, selling, purchasing, transportation, imports inter-State, exports inter-State or use of cannabis.

Satish Maneshinde, the lawyer arguing in defence of Aryan Khan said in the court, “Accused number 1, Aryan Khan was invited for the cruise party. However, he did not have a boarding pass. He didn’t have any seats or cabins there. Secondly, according to the seizure, nothing has been found in his possession. He is arrested only based on chats.”