Former zonal officer of the Mumbai Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), Sameer Wankhede is currently facing CBI interrogation regarding the alleged ₹25 crore bribery linked to Aryan Khan's 2021 arrest.
On Friday (19 May), the Bombay High Court had ordered the CBI to refrain from taking immediate action against Wankhede, thus temporarily preventing his arrest.
Wankhede is accused of demanding ₹25 crore from Shah Rukh Khan when his eldest son, Aryan Khan was arrested during the Cordelia cruise in October 2021.
During the proceedings at the Bombay High Court, Wankhede presented WhatsApp chats with Shah Rukh Khan, in which the actor praised Wankhede's integrity and requested leniency for his son.
Wankhede strongly refutes all allegations of irregularities against him, and claims that the CBI's decision to file an FIR against him is in retaliation for his complaint against NCB deputy director Gyaneshwar Singh, whom he accuses of making casteist remarks.
He contends that while Aryan Khan's name initially appeared in the draft complaint, it was subsequently omitted from the final version. He further alleges that an external draft complaint replaced the original.
Wankhede, in his plea, revealed that Shah Rukh Khan sent multiple text messages on WhatsApp, requesting him to go easy on Aryan. The actor began, "I know this is officially inappropriate and maybe outright wrong but once as a father if I can speak with you. please. Love srk".
The purported WhatsApp chats between Wankhede and Shah Rukh Khan, presented as evidence, do not mention the alleged bribe, as reported by Free Press Journal.
According to India Today, sources in the NCB claimed that Wankhede violated the conduct rules.
They questioned, “How can any investigating officer have such lengthy conversations with the accused's family? During the investigation of the Aryan Khan case, Sameer Wankhede never informed his seniors about the WhatsApp chats he had with Shah Rukh Khan".
In the leaked WhatsApp chats reported by Free Press Journal, Shah Rukh Khan repeatedly begged Wankhede to go easy on his son.
The ex-zonal head responded that he wanted to be kind to "the child (Aryan Khan) and look at him in a reformatory way" but the effort was maligned by vested interest people.
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