Filmmaker Indrajit Lankesh claims at least 15 into drug trade in Kannada film industry
Bengaluru: Filmmaker and journalist Indrajit Lankesh on Tuesday claimed that at least 15 people in the Kannada film industry were involved in drug trafficking.
He made the claim a day after deposing before the police to share the information about the alleged drug racket operating in the film industry.
"I have given (names of) around 15 people whom I know are into drug business. I shared those names with the police," Lankesh told PTI.
Lankesh was questioned for nearly five hours by the Central Crime Branch on Monday for his statement that there were many people in the film industry who were into the drug business either as consumers or sellers.
The filmmaker made the statement in the wake of the Narcotics Control Bureau busting a drug trafficking racket here and said some "prominent musicians and actors" in Karnataka were under its scanner. The filmmaker said he wanted to expose the drug use in the industry.
"There are celebrities, when they start smoking and start doing cocaine, they are the brand ambassadors of youth today. These people think it is cool..," he added.
Lankesh said he suspected that some of the parties organised in the 'Sandalwood' were hosted by drug mafias within the industry.
Lankesh did not rule out the possibility of the Mumbai underworld behind the supply of drugs to a section of people in the Kannada film industry.
Meanwhile, the police said they were probing the matter.
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Road rage: Businessman assaulted for attempting to run over four men in Navi Mumbai
Mumbai (PTI): A group of people assaulted a businessman after he attempted to run over four men with his SUV in an incident of road rage in Navi Mumbai, police said on Saturday.
The police have registered two cases in connection with the incident that occurred in the Sanpada area on Thursday night, an official said.
A group of around 20 people dragged businessman Digvijay Shelke (28) out of his SUV and assaulted him after the latter allegedly attempted to run over four men following an argument, he said.
The official said a quarrel broke out after a man rammed his scooter into a parked car belonging to one Ayush Patil, who was talking to his friends outside a hotel.
Patil and his friends later demanded that the man pay for the damage he did to the car. The man then called up his brother, Bhim Tamrakar, a security guard, and an argument ensued, he said.
Tamrakar called up Shelke, who arrived at the scene and confronted Patil and his friends and allegedly attempted to run them over in a fit of rage, the official said.
A group of 20 people soon gathered outside the hotel and thrashed Shelke, he said.
The official said a case of attempt to murder has been registered against Shelke, and based on his complaint, 23 people have been booked for rioting, assault, and wrongful confinement under the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS).
