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On Fadnavis-Malik row over cruise ship drugs case, Thackeray says ‘let’s see what happens’
Earlier in the day, NCP leader and Maharashtra minister Nawab Malik tweeted a picture of former CM Devendra Fadnavis and his wife Amruta with Jaydeep Rana, an alleged drug peddler held in a drugs’ case, and said the previous BJP-led government in the state used to give protection to such people.
Maharashtra chief minister and Shiv Sena leader Uddhav Thackeray on Monday dodged questions related to the ongoing row between Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and former chief minister Devendra Fadnavis and state minister Nawab Malik. “There are mutations in the allegations. Let’s see what happens,” Thackeray told news agency PTI.
Earlier in the day, Malik tweeted pictures of Fadnavis and his wife Amruta with Jaydeep Rana, an alleged drug peddler who has been arrested in a drug peddling case. The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader claimed that people like Rana used to get protection in Maharashtra during the earlier rule of the BJP-led government. He further said that Fadnavis has good relations with Rana, who also funded the “Mumbai River Anthem'' song that was sung by the former CM’s wife with singer Sonu Nigam.
In response, Fadnavis quashed all allegations and hit back at Malik, saying that he will expose the latter’s links with the underworld after Diwali.
Watch here | Underworld' vs 'drug cartel': Nawab Malik targets Fadnavis amid Aryan Khan row
This latest exchange between the politicians come amid a score of allegations Malik has made against Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) Mumbai zonal director Sameer Wankhede since he along with his team raided a God-bound Cordelia ship. Multiple people were nabbed in association with the case, including Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan’s son Aryan Khan that created a massive buzz around it.
Sharing photos of Wankhede from his wedding to his ex-wife Shabana Quraishi on Twitter, Malik said that the NCB officer follows Islam and has forged his caste documents in order to get a government job. The minister also said that Wankhede has framed as many as 26 innocent people in fake drug cases in the past, referring to Aryan arrest and over 20 days’ stay in jail.
Notably, the 23-year-old was granted bail by the Bombay high court on Thursday and he walked out of jail on Saturday. Co-accused actor Arbaaz Seth Merchant and model Munmun Dhamecha were also granted bail along with Aryan. So far, a total of 14 people have been given bail while six remain lodged in jail.
