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Aryan Khan gets clean chit in Cordelia cruise drug caseDue to lack of sufficient evidence, Aryan and five others of the total 20 accused could not be prosecuted by the central drug-enforcement agency
Mrityunjay Bose
DHNS
Last Updated IST
Aryan Khan. Credit: PTI File Photo
Aryan Khan. Credit: PTI File Photo

Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan’s son Aryan Khan who was arrested in a drugs case and spent close to a month behind bars was given a clean chit by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) on Friday.

Due to lack of sufficient evidence, Aryan and five others of the total 20 accused could not be prosecuted by the central drug-enforcement agency.

The NCB filed its chargesheet in the case before a special court set up under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985, in Mumbai.

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Hours after the charge sheet was filed, NCB Director General SN Pradhan said in New Delhi that the probe agency had gone by the principle of evidence beyond reasonable doubt. “We found physical and circumstantial evidence against 14 persons and against six there was insufficient evidence. We considered all facts found during the initial investigation and found no concrete evidence (against six others),” he said.

IRS officer Sameer Wankhede, the then NCB’s Mumbai Zonal Director, who is now attached to the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, refused to comment.

NCB Deputy Director General (Operations) Sanjay Kumar Singh said that Aryan was not found with drugs when he was apprehended by the NCB.

“The SIT carried out the investigation in an objective manner. The touchstone of the principle of proof beyond reasonable doubt has been applied. Based on investigations carried out by the SIT, a complaint against 14 persons under various sections of NDPS Act is being filed. Complaint against rest 6 is not being filed because of lack of evidence,” Singh said.

Those who have not been chargesheeted besides Aryan are: Avin Sahu, Gopal Anand, Samir Saighan, Bhaskar Aroda and Manav Singhal.

The 14 who have been chargesheeted are: Arbaaz Merchant, Munmun Dhamecha, Vikrant Chhokar, Mohak Jaiswal, Ishmeet Singh Chadha, Gomit Chopra, Nupur Satija, Abdul Kadar Shaikh, Shreyas Nair, Manish Rajgariya, Aachit Kumar, Chinedu Igwe, Shivraj Harijan and Okoro Uzeoma.

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(Published 27 May 2022, 13:17 IST)