Sameer Wankhede's 'chats' with Shah Rukh Khan violation of rules: NCB officials

Sameer Wankhede produced purported chats with Shah Rukh Khan straight in the court and did not provide the phone, NCB officials said.

IRS officer Sameer Wankhede's purported chats with Shah Rukh Khan which Wankhede produced in the court in his defence are against the conduct rules, NCB insiders said as the investigating officer can not engage with the family members of the 'accused', news agency ANI reported citing NCB sources. The purported chats were presented in the court and Sameer Wankhede never informed his seniors about the conversation and he did not even provide the phone on which he chatted with Shah Rukh Khan.

Sameer Wankhede never informed the investigators about his purported chats with Shah Rukh Khan, NCB officials said.

"Sameer Wankhade giving chats in the court is against the conduct rules of NCB. How an investigating officer can have such chats with the family of the accused?" NCB officials said.

Sameer Wankhede, the former NCB Mumbai zone chief, has been accused of demanding a ₹25 crore bribe from Shah Rukh Khan when his son Aryan Khan was arrested in the drugs-on-cruise case. The bribe was negotiated through KP Gosavi, an independent witness of the case, who was allegedly given a free hand by Wankhede. An amount of ₹50 lakh was given to KP Gosavi, the CBI alleged in the FIR against Wankhede, filed two years after the drugs-on-cruise case.

The investigation against Wankhede continued while his term as the NCB Mumbai zone chief ended in 2021 and his next posting was in Chennai. In the FIR, CBI said the person who had drugs was let off, while Aryan Khan was arrested for a bribe.

Wankhede dismissed these allegations and produced the purported chats with Shah Rukh Khan where Shah Rukh Khan requested Wankhede to be kind to Aryan and also praised his integrity.

Sameer Wankhede has been granted relief from arrest till Monday by the Bombay high court. On Saturday, he was interrogated by the CBI for five hours.