DEEPIKA, SARA ALI KHAN AMONG FOUR ACTORS TO RECEIVE NCB SUMMONS

The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) on Wednesday summoned four actors, Deepika Padukone, Sara Ali Khan, Shraddha Kapoor and Rakul Preet Singh to join the investigation into alleged drug abuse connected to the death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput.

NCB deputy director KPS Malhotra confirmed the summons.

He said Padukone was asked to come and record her statement on September 25 while Khan and Kapoor were called for inquiry on September 26. Singh, designer Simone Khambatta and Rajput’s former business manager, Shruti Modi, were asked to join the investigation on Thursday.

The bureau is one of several agencies – including the CBI and the ED – probing the death of 34-year-old Rajput, who was found dead in his Bandra flat on June 14.

Weeks later, the actor’s family filed a police complaint and blamed the actor’s girlfriend, actor Rhea Chakraborty, for the death. Chakraborty and her brother Showik were arrested by NCB on September 9. The bureau has so far arrested 19 people. On Wednesday, NCB questioned Rajput’s talent manager Jaya Saha for the third consecutive day and talent agency KWAN’s CEO Dhruv Chitgopekar, for the second day. The agency also questioned film producer Madhu Mantena in connection with the drug case.

A NCB official said Khan and Singh’s names surfaced during Chakraborty’s interrogation, and Padukone’s name emerged in various messages allegedly linked to the drug case. Padukone’s manager, Karishma Prakash who is also an employee of KWAN, was also summoned by NCB.

Chakraborty, who is in judicial custody till October 6, has filed a bail plea in the Bombay high court.

In her plea, she said Rajput was in the habit of consuming drugs and that while she had sometimes procured drugs for him, she was in no way a part of any drug syndicate.