Bombay High Court Orders No Coercive Action Against Sameer Wankhede Till April 10 In NCB Probe Over Irregularities In Drugs Case Investigations

The Bombay High Court today granted temporary protection from coercive action to IRS officer Sameer Wankhede in an enquiry initiated by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) regarding irregularities in drug cases investigated by him.

A division bench of Justice Revati Mohite Dere and Justice Manjusha Deshpande directed the NCB to respond to Wankhede's petition against notices issued to him by the NCB by April 10, stating that no coercive action should be taken against him until then.

The NCB initiated a preliminary inquiry against Wankhede concerning the drugs case linked to Rajput's death and another case involving the arrest of a Nigerian national for drug possession, both of which were investigated by Wankhede, following anonymous complaints alleging irregularities in the investigations.

The NCB's probe into alleged drug use within the film industry was sparked by Rajput's death in June 2020. Subsequently, the agency filed charges against Rajput's girlfriend Rhea Chakraborty, her brother Showik, and 33 others for purported possession, consumption, and financing of drugs.

Between November 2023 and March 2024, the NCB issued eight notices to Wankhede, directing him to appear before Deputy Director General Sanjay Singh, who heads the preliminary inquiry. Thus, Wankhede filed the present petition in the high court challenging the inquiry and the notices, alleging he was being targeted and that the inquiry was retaliatory.

Wankhede argued that Singh, being his former superior officer, could not lead the inquiry, as all actions taken by him in the cases under scrutiny were approved by Singh and other superior officers. Wankhede claimed that the anonymous complaints were brought to the notice of NCB by former minister Nawab Malik because he had arrested Malik's son-in-law in a drug case.

Additionally, Wankhede argued that the NCB cannot initiate inquiries based on anonymous complaints. His petition highlighted that one of the complaints against him in the Rajput case was allegedly submitted by actor Sapna Pabbi, who is listed as a wanted accused in the chargesheet.

“The Respondents have hand-picked 2 specific cases to allege irregularities in the investigation conducted by the Petitioner wherein the prime accused persons are absconding wanted persons and therefore the Petitioner will not be afforded the opportunity to test the veracity of such false and frivolous allegations 48 by cross-examining the said accused persons”, the petition alleges. The petition further claims that the issuance of the impugned notices is “nothing but an attempt to wreak vengeance upon the Petitione,” it stated.

The NCB contended that Wankhede cannot dictate who conducts the inquiry against him. After NCB sought time to file a reply to Wankhede's petition, the court granted him temporary protection.

Wankhede, a 2008-batch IRS officer is also facing charges of extortion and bribery filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) last year in connection with an alleged attempt to solicit Rs 25 crores to avoid implicating actor Shah Rukh Khan's son, Aryan Khan, in the Cordelia Cruise drug bust case. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) later filed a money laundering case against him arising out of the CBI case. Wankhede sought relief from the Bombay High Court in both cases and was granted interim protection from coercive action.

Case Title – Sameer Dnyandev Wankhede v. Narcotics Control Bureau & Anr.