Indian Revenue Service (IRS) officer Sameer Wankhede did not attend his scheduled statement recording session with the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Wednesday, citing personal reasons, according to sources. As a result, the agency is expected to issue fresh summons to Wankhede, requesting his participation in the ongoing investigation related to the Cordelia cruise drug bust case.
Sources reveal that the CBI had initially summoned Wankhede on Monday, instructing him to appear before the agency on Wednesday. However, Wankhede informed the CBI that he would be unable to attend.
The Issue
Former zonal director of the Mumbai Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), Wankhede had previously written to the Mumbai Police commissioner on Monday, requesting enhanced security due to serious threats he and his family were facing on social media.
During the weekend, the CBI had interrogated Wankhede for over five hours. The agency is currently investigating allegations regarding a purported demand of a Rs 25 crore bribe by the IRS officer from actor Shah Rukh Khan in exchange for not implicating his son Aryan in the drug bust case.
Based on a complaint by the NCB, the CBI registered a case on May 11 against Wankhede and four others, including NCB superintendent VV Singh, intelligence officer Ashish Ranjan, and two private individuals, KP Gosavi and Sanvile D'souza. The charges include criminal conspiracy, extortion threats, and bribery under the Prevention of Corruption Act.
On Friday, Wankhede obtained relief from the Bombay High Court, which directed the CBI not to take any coercive action, such as arrest, against him until May 22.
In his plea seeking the quashing of the FIR, Wankhede alleged that the original "draft complaint" in the 2021 drugs-on-cruise case had named Aryan as an accused but was subsequently altered, resulting in the removal of Aryan's name.
The Aryan Khan Case
Aryan was arrested by the NCB on October 3, 2021, following an alleged drug seizure on the Cordelia ship. He was granted bail by the high court three weeks later due to the NCB's failure to substantiate its charges against him.
According to the CBI, the NCB's Mumbai zone received information in October 2021 regarding drug consumption and possession by several individuals aboard the cruise ship. It is alleged that certain NCB officers conspired to extort bribes from the accused in exchange for leniency.
Wankhede has consistently denied the allegations against him. In his petition to the High Court, he provided transcripts of phone conversations with Shah Rukh Khan during the period when Aryan was in NCB custody. The transcripts showed Khan pleading with Wankhede to treat his son with kindness and praising the officer for his integrity.
