On Saturday, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) interrogated former Mumbai NCB chief Sameer Wankhede for over five hours. He is being investigated in a case where he is accused of allegedly demanding a bribe of Rs 25 crore from Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan in order to prevent any implications on his son, Aryan, in the 'drug bust' case related to the Cordelia cruise.
CBI questioned Wankhede for over 5 hours in the Cordelia cruise drug bust bribery case.
At approximately 2 pm, the Indian Revenue Service (IRS) officer was granted a lunch break lasting around 30 minutes. Following the break, the officer returned to the CBI office and resumed participating in the investigation. An official stated that the officer concluded their day and departed at around 4:30 pm.
Wankhede was granted relief from the Bombay High Court on Friday which directed the CBI not to take any "coercive action" against him till May 22.
During the hearing at the High Court, the former NCB zonal director, who is seeking the dismissal of the CBI FIR, claimed that in the initial "draft complaint" for the 2021 drugs-on-cruise case, Aryan Khan was mentioned as an accused. However, the former director alleged that the complaint was subsequently altered, leading to the removal of Aryan's name from the list of accused individuals.
According to the CBI, the NCB's Mumbai zone was informed in October 2021 about the consumption and possession of narcotics by multiple individuals aboard the Cordelia cruise. It is alleged that certain NCB officers conspired to solicit bribes from the accused in exchange for avoiding their arrests.