Aryan Khan drugs case: CBI summons Sameer Wankhede to record his statement on May 18

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) issued a summons to Sameer Wankhede, the former zonal director of the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), on Monday in connection with the Aryan Khan drug case. Mr. Wankhede has been directed to appear before the agency on Thursday to record his statement.

Wankhede, four others booked for extortion

The CBI has issued a summons against IRS officer Sameer Wankhede following an FIR registered by the central agency last week against the former NCB zonal director and four others for allegedly demanding ₹25 crore bribe from Bollywood Badshah Shah Rukh Khan to not implicate his son Aryan Khan in the Cordelia cruise case. The accused are also alleged to have taken a ₹50 lakh advance from the superstar's secretary, Pooja Dadlani.

On Friday, a team of CBI officials raided Sameer Wankhede's residence in Goregaon and 29 other locations. The premier agency has sent electronic devices seized from Wankhede's office and residence to a forensic lab to retrieve data.

Cordelia cruise drug bust case and aftermath

Sameer Wankhede, who was the NCB Mumbai zone chief during the Cordelia cruise drug bust case, reportedly seized 13 grams of cocaine, five grams of mephedrone, 21 grams of marijuana, 22 pills of MDMA (ecstasy), and ₹1.33 lakh in cash. Following this, 17 individuals, including Aryan Khan, were arrested. Meanwhile, legal experts have stated that Pooja Dadlani, Shah Rukh Khan's manager, who allegedly gave ₹50 lakhs to witness Gosavi, has not yet been summoned by the authorities. They also added that she could be liable for prosecution for offering a bribe.