Bombay HC: Aryan Khan need not attend NCB office on Fridays
Darpan News Desk IANS, 15 Dec, 2021 01:16 PM
Mumbai, Dec 15 (IANS) Granting relief, the Bombay High Court modified the bail condition of Aryan Khan, son of Bollywood megastar Shah Rukh Khan, requiring him to compulsorily mark attendance with the Narcotics Control Bureau office here, every Friday.
Justice Nitin Sambre said while he need not go to the NCB headquarters here on Fridays, Aryan Khan must remain present before the NCB Special Investigation Team of Delhi whenever required, subject to a 72-hour advance notice given to him.
On Aryan Khan's plea for travelling outside Mumbai, the court said he must submit his itinerary to the investigation officer in advance.
His lawyer, Senior Advocate Amit Desai had sought modification to the bail condition since the matter is now being handled by the Delhi SIT, and the celeb-son faced huge problems in commuting each Friday owing to the huge media presence.
Representing the NCB, the Special Public Prosecutor S. Shirsat concurred that since the case is now taken over by SIT Delhi, the (Friday compulsory appearance) condition could be modified to the extent as and when he is summoned by the SIT.
In a sensation, the Mumbai NCB Zonal Director Sameer Wankhede and his team raided the luxury ship, Cordelia Cruise on October 1 and detained Aryan Khan, along with others.
The following day (October 2), he and seven others were arrested sparking off a massive furore with allegations and counter-allegations from various quarters vis-a-vis Wankhede's action.
Though no drugs were recovered from him, Aryan Khan spent almost four weeks in NCB and judicial custody till he was granted bail on October 28, and later the case was handed over to the agency's SIT Delhi for further probe.
During the subsequent NCB investigations, a total of 20 persons were arrested in the same case and a majority are now enlarged on bail.
Along with Aryan Khan - the son of superstar Shah Rukh Khan, the other seven accused - arrested by the Narcotics Control Bureau on October 3 after the October 2 raid on a rave party aboard a cruise ship - were also sent to judicial custody till October 30 by the court.
Talking of 'Sooryavanshi', the film is now set for a massive theatrical release after its run-ins with delays and uncertainties. The film which also stars Akshay Kumar, Jackie Shroff and Jaaved Jaaferi with Ajav Devgn and Ranveer Singh in extended cameo appearances, will hit the screens on November 5 and will quell the audience's hunger for a true blue Bollywood potboiler, this Diwali.
Special NDPS Judge V.V. Patil also declined the bail applications of Arbaaz Merchant and Munmun Dhamecha, the two others accused in the drug case lodged by Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB).
The unverifiable reports, attributed to unidentified NCB sources, claimed that Aryan Khan was purportedly 'full of guilt and remorse' over his recent actions leading to his arrest and custody since the past 17 days.
It was last year, when Rhea made headlines after she was accused by Sushant's family for abetment to suicide and also siphoning off funds from the late actor. She was also named in a Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) chargesheet along with her brother Showik in a drug-related probe into Sushant's death case.
In a huge setback to Aryan Khan, a Mumbai special NDPS court on Thursday reserved its order on his and other co-accused's bail applications till October 20, even as the NCB virtually labelled him a 'junkie' regularly consuming drugs.
