Never sought bribe from Shah Rukh Khan to spare his son in drugs case: IRS officer Sameer Wankhede
The Hindu
Sameer Wankhede denies bribery allegations involving Shah Rukh Khan’s son in drugs case during Bombay High Court proceedings.
Former Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) Mumbai zonal director Sameer Wankhede told the Bombay High Court on Monday (March 23, 2026) that he never demanded or took a bribe from actor Shah Rukh Khan to spare his son Aryan Khan following the latter's arrest in a cruise drugs case.
Mr. Wankhede's counsel, Aabad Ponda, was arguing the Indian Revenue Service (IRS) officer’s petition seeking to quash the FIR registered against him in May 2023 by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on charges of corruption and bribery.
Mr. Ponda told a Bench of Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar and Justice Suman Shyam that Mr. Wankhede never demanded or took a bribe from Shah Rukh Khan.
As per the CBI FIR, Mr. Wankhede and the other accused in the case allegedly demanded ₹25 crore from the actor to give a clean chit to his son in the drugs case.
However, Mr. Ponda told the court that the CBI has no evidence to establish that Wankhede demanded or received any bribe.
The NCB had received a tip-off about alleged drugs on the cruise ship Cordelia. A search was conducted in accordance with the law and a few persons, including Aryan Khan, were arrested, the counsel added.
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