Sanction against Sameer Wankhede in graft case obtained on time, NCB tells high court
MUMBAI: There was no delay in obtaining sanction required to probe into graft allegations against Indian Revenue Service (IRS) officer Sameer Wankhede and four others, the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) told the Bombay high court on Tuesday.
In an affidavit filed before the court, the agency said the sanction — a mandatory provision under the Prevention of Corruption Act — was granted by the competent authority under the Union home ministry within 21 days of the Central Bureau of Investigation’s (CBI) intimation.
The affidavit came in response to a petition filed by Wankhede, the former NCB Mumbai zonal director, seeking quashing of the FIR registered by CBI against him over allegations that he demanded ₹25 crore bribe from actor Shah Rukh Khan for not implicating his son Aryan in the October 2021 Cordelia cruise drug bust case.
Wankhede contended that the NCB had not obtained sanction to probe the matter within three months, as mandated under Section 17A of the 1988 Act.
NCB, however, said that CBI intimated it about the sanction on April 18. “The NCB has obtained the requisite prior approval under Section 17A on May 11, 2023, which is within three months from the date of the application,” the affidavit said. “Hence, there is no bar of Section 17A in the present case.”
The HC has granted protection to Wankhede from any coercive action by CBI till June 8.
In its FIR registered on May 11, CBI accused Wankhede and few others of conspiring to extort money from Shah Rukh Khan for not implicating Aryan in the drug bust case.
On October 3, 2021, Aryan was arrested by the NCB following the alleged drug seizure on board the cruise ship. As the agency failed to substantiate charges against Aryan, he was granted bail by the high court three weeks later.