Cruise drug bust bribery case: Sameer Wankhede appears before CBI for 2nd day
Mumbai (PTI): Former Mumbai NCB chief Sameer Wankhede appeared before the CBI in Mumbai for the second day on Sunday 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, an official said.
Wankhede, an Indian Revenue Service (IRS) officer, reached the Central Bureau of Investigation's (CBI) office in the Bandra-Kurla Complex at around 10.30 am, he said.
While entering the agency's office, Wankhede told reporters he has "faith in the judiciary".
On Saturday, the CBI questioned Wankhede for more than five hours.
After he left the CBI office at around 4.30 pm on Saturday, Wankhede along with his family members visited the Siddhivinayak temple at Prabhadevi in Mumbai.
The central agency booked Wankhede and four others on May 11 for alleged criminal conspiracy and threat of extortion, besides provisions pertaining to bribery under the Prevention of Corruption Act on a complaint by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB).
On Friday, Wankhede got a relief from the Bombay High Court which directed the CBI not to take any "coercive action", such as arrest, against him till May 22.
Seeking quashing of the FIR, Wankhede alleged before the HC that the "draft complaint" in the 2021 drugs-on-cruise case named Aryan Khan as an accused, but it was later replaced and Aryan's name was dropped.
Aryan Khan was arrested by the NCB on October 3, 2021, following the alleged drug seizure on board the Cordelia cruise ship here. He was granted bail by the high court three weeks later as the anti-drugs agency failed to substantiate its charges against him.
The CBI alleged that the NCB's Mumbai zone received information in October 2021 regarding the consumption and possession of narcotic substances by various individuals on the cruise ship, and some NCB officers conspired to get bribes from the accused in return for letting them off.
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Man jumps to death from 22nd floor of posh Noida society; depression suspected
Noida (PTI): A 37-year-old man allegedly died by suicide after jumping from the 22nd floor of a posh residential society in Sector 107 here, police said on Monday.
The incident took place on Sunday in Prateek Edifice Society under the jurisdiction of the Sector-39 police station. The deceased has been identified as Sajjal Mehrotra, a company director who lived in the society with his family.
"On Sunday afternoon, he jumped from the balcony of his flat on the 22nd floor," a police official said.
Family members and security guards rushed him to a nearby hospital, where doctors declared him dead, police said, adding that no suicide note has been found.
Prima facie, the deceased was suffering from depression, officials said, adding that other aspects of the case are being investigated.
The body has been sent for post-mortem and further legal formalities are underway.
Police said the man got married about 10 years ago and is survived by his wife and two children. No complaint has been received from the family in connection with the incident.
(Assistance for overcoming suicidal thoughts is available on the state’s health helpline 104, Tele-MANAS 14416.)
