The Bombay High Court has refused to grant an urgent hearing to a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking to restrain NCP leader Nawab Malik from making comments on the ongoing investigation in the Cordelia cruise drugs case.
The PIL filed by Kauser Ali, who claims to be a maulana and a businessman, has sought that Malik be restrained from commenting in any manner on the officers of the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) with an intention to demoralise the agency including its zonal director, Sameer Wankhede and his family members.
Ashok Saraogi, Ali’s advocate, mentioned the PIL before a division bench of Chief Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice MS Karnik on Wednesday. The judges, however, refused to grant an urgent hearing saying that the petitioner should either approach the vacation court or wait till the plea comes up for hearing next month.
“In his capacity as a priest, the petitioner is taking steps for rehab of all persons who are addicts of consuming drugs,” reads the PIL.
Coming to support of the NCB, the plea states that the investigating agency has been taking steps to prevent consumption of such drugs even as mafias are trading in drugs within the country and internationally.
The plea also points out that various cases are being probed by agencies like the NCB, the CBI, and ED after the death of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput.
It claims the NCB has proved to be the most effective agency under the supervision of officer Sameer Wankhede.
The plea suggests that in case Malik had any grievance against Wankhede then he should have adopted appropriate legal proceedings instead of starting a war on social media against the officer and his sister.
