Bribery case: Bombay HC extends interim relief to Sameer Wankhede till June 8
Mumbai (PTI): The Bombay High Court on Monday extended till June 8 the interim protection granted to former NCB zonal director Sameer Wankhede in a case in which he is accused of demanding Rs 25 crore bribe from superstar Shah Rukh Khan for not implicating his son Aryan in the Cordelia cruise 'drug bust' case.
Last Friday, the HC had directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) not to take any coercive against the Indian Revenue Service (IRS) officer till May 22.
A vacation bench of justices Abhay Ahuja and M M Sathaye on Monday extended Wankhede's interim protection from any coercive action, such as arrest, while hearing his plea seeking quashing of the CBI's FIR against him.
The bench also directed Wankhede to give an undertaking that he will not talk to the media about the case, appear before the CBI as and when called, and not tamper with evidence.
The CBI recently filed an FIR against Wankhede for allegedly seeking Rs 25 crore bribe for not framing the Bollywood star's son Aryan Khan in the drugs-on-cruise case.
The probe agency has booked Wankhede and four others for alleged criminal conspiracy and extortion threat, besides provisions pertaining to bribery under the Prevention of Corruption Act, on a complaint by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB).
The agency has alleged that the NCB, Mumbai Zone, received information in October 2021 related to the consumption and possession of narcotics substances by various individuals on the private cruise ship and some of its officers conspired and obtained undue advantage in the form of bribes from the alleged accused.
Aryan Khan was arrested by the NCB on October 3, 2021 after a raid on the Cordelia cruise ship. He was granted bail by the Bombay High Court after three weeks as the NCB failed to substantiate its charges against him.
#WATCH | Mumbai: "I'm getting threats continuously for the last 4 days. Will share everything with the Police Commissioner...": Sameer Wankhede, Former Zonal Director of Mumbai NCB pic.twitter.com/l4IuqFjNlo
— ANI (@ANI) May 22, 2023
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I will remain active in politics to serve people till my last breath: Siddaramaiah in Varuna
Mysuru: Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, who visited his constituency Varuna in Mysuru district for the first time since taking charge as the head of the state government in May, declared that he would enthusiastically serve the people till his last breath.
Siddaramaiah, who landed at the Suttur Helipad in Nanjangud taluk on Saturday, was accorded a warm welcome by his supporters. He also attended a program at Biligere in Varuna, to thank the voters who ensured his victory in the recent Assembly election. Addressing the gathering, the CM said, “This was the last election I would contest in, but I will remain active in politics till I die as it would give me an opportunity to serve the citizens.”
Siddaramaiah further said, “The great seers of our land like Basavanna always lived true to their words. Keeping them as my model, I took oath as the Chief Minister of Karnataka on Basava Jayanti, the birth anniversary of Basavanna,” adding, “The post of a chief minister, however, is by no means a position of luxury. I consider it an opportunity for me to bring in improvement in the lives of the people of Karnataka.”
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Referring to his earlier work as Karnataka CM, he said, “There were schemes in 2013 for the welfare of all people without distinction between communities, region or religion. Our government, in its current tenure, will be even more efficient in working for the welfare of the people and our schemes will be more fruitful than those during the earlier tenure.”
Speaking about the guarantees promised by the Congress government, Siddaramaiah stated that Prime Minister Narendra Modi too had said that the Congress would fail at implementing the promises leading the state to bankruptcy and also pointed out that the state government had implemented all the five guarantees. “When the Congress government promised schemes that would benefit the lower and middle classes, PM Modi and the Central government should have supported us in our efforts. Our PM, unfortunately, is not considering an uplift of the lower and middle classes worthy of his efforts,” said Siddaramaiah, also hitting out at the BJP for ‘continuing its convention of confusing the people with its horde of lies’.
