Tag: aryan khan bail

Cruise Drugs Case: HC Rejects Pre-Arrest Bail Plea of Sam D’Souza

Rejecting the bail, the judge noted that the applicant should have first approached the sessions court.

Mumbai: The Bombay high court on Wednesday rejected an application seeking pre-arrest bail filed by Samville D’Souza, whose name had cropped up in connection with allegations of pay-off in the case of a drug seizure in which Aryan Khan, actor Shah Rukh Khan’s son, was arrested.

A vacation bench of Justice S P Tavade heard D’Souza’s plea on late Wednesday night. Rejecting it, the judge noted that the applicant should have first approached the sessions court. D’Souza claimed in the plea that Kiran Gosavi, a witness of the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in the case, had taken Rs 50 lakh from Shah Rukh Khan’s manager Pooja Dadlani to get Aryan released.

The amount was returned after the NCB arrested the 23-year-old in the case on October 3, the application said. D’Souza further claimed that Gosavi had told him that no narcotic drug was found on Aryan, and he was, in fact, innocent.

There were allegations of corruption and extortion against an NCB official and others, including himself, and a deal of Rs 18 crore was struck for the release of “a prominent accused” (Aryan Khan), said the application.

Following these allegations, the Maharashtra government set up a Special Investigation Team to probe the case. D’Souza said in the plea that he feared arrest by this SIT, and hence he was seeking `anticipatory’ or pre-arrest bail and also interim protection from arrest (till the court gave its decision).

According to D’Souza, on October 2, he was informed by an acquaintance about the NCB detaining an “influential person” after raiding a cruise ship off the Mumbai coast.

He then went to the cruise terminal gate at the port where he met Kiran Gosavi and Manish Bhanushali (another NCB witness), he said. Gosavi informed him that the NCB had detained Aryan Khan and the 23-year-old wanted to speak to his father’s manager, Pooja Dadlani. Gosavi also told him that Aryan had no drug in his possession and was innocent, D’Souza claimed.

“Gosavi convinced me that he could help Aryan Khan get relief and asked me to connect with Pooja Dadlani,” the application said.

D’Souza then contacted Dadlani through a mutual friend and met her in Lower Parel area along with Gosavi. Gosavi showed her a list in which Aryan’s name was not mentioned and informed her that Aryan did not have any drugs on him and he (Gosavi) can help him get out of this situation, the application alleged.

D’Souza then left the spot and was not part of further discussions between Gosavi and Dadlani, the application said.

When he learnt of Aryan Khan’s arrest in the case the next day, he was shocked, he said.

He was informed by one Sunil Patil that Gosavi had taken Rs 50 lakh from Dadlani through his bodyguard Prabhakar Sail, D’Souza said, adding that “Gosavi and Sail are fraud and the main conspirators in the case.”

In order to protect his own image, D’Souza then got the money back and returned it to Dadlani through her husband, he said.

Prabhakar Sail falsely implicated him in the case, he alleged.

Gosavi is presently in the custody of Pune police in connection with a job racket.

Also Read: Kiran Gosavi, NCB’s Controversial ‘Witness’ in Aryan Khan Case, Detained in Pune

Sail had alleged that Gosavi attempted to extort money from Shah Rukh Khan for letting off Aryan in the case, and a part of the money was to be given to NCB’s Mumbai zonal director Sameer Wankhede.

Wankhede, who denied the charges, also approached the high court seeking protection.

The Maharashtra government assured the court that it would give Wankhede three days’ notice if it planned to take any coercive action against him.

Aryan Khan was granted bail by the high court last week.

(PTI)

Delay in Communicating Bail Orders Affects Liberty, Needs Urgent Redressal: Justice Chandrachud

The Supreme Court judge cited as an example an Orissa high court initiative that provides for the grant of e-custody certificate to every under-trial prisoner and convict who is undergoing a sentence of imprisonment.

New Delhi: Supreme Court judge Justice D.Y. Chandrachud has termed the delay in communicating bail orders to prison authorities as a very serious deficiency and stressed the need to address it on war footing as it touches the human liberty of every under-trial prisoner.

Justice Chandrachud was speaking at an online event organised by the Allahabad high court to inaugurate virtual courts and e-Sewa kendras to facilitate online legal assistance to litigants.

“A very serious deficiency in the criminal justice system is the delay in the communication of bail orders, which we need to address on [a] war footing. Because this touches upon human liberty of every under-trial, or even a convict who has got suspension of sentence,” he said.

Recently, Aryan Khan, son of Bollywood superstar Shahrukh Khan, spent an extra day in the Arthur Road jail in Mumbai, despite securing bail from the Bombay high court in the drugs-on-cruise case.

Prior to this, a bench led by Chief Justice of India N.V. Ramana had expressed strong displeasure over reports of delay in implementation of bail orders and had said it would set up a secure, credible and authentic channel for transmission of orders. “Even in the digital age, we are still looking at the skies for the pigeons to communicate orders,” the bench had said

The Supreme Court had then ordered the implementation of a project – Fast and Secure Transmission of Electronic Records (FASTER) – for faster communication and compliance of its orders and had asked all states and union territories to ensure internet facility, with adequate speed, in every jail.

Speaking at the event, Justice Chandrachud referred to one of the initiatives of the Orissa high court which provides for the grant of e-custody certificate to every under-trial prisoner and convict who is undergoing a sentence of imprisonment.

“That certificate will give us all the requisite data with regard to that particular under-trial or convict, right from initial remand to the subsequent progress of each case. This will also help us in ensuring that bail orders are communicated as soon as they are made, from the place they are communicated, to the jails for immediate implementation,” he said.

Justice Chandrachud also referred to the importance of virtual courts and said that they have been set up in 12 states for adjudicating traffic challans. “Across the country, 99.43 lakh cases have been completed. Fines have been collected for 18.35 lakh cases. The total fine collected is over Rs 119 crore. About 98,000 violators chose to contest the case,” the judge said.

“Now you can imagine that for a common citizen who has a traffic challan, to spend a day away from daily wages and to go to court to pay for the traffic challan is not productive,” he said.

Justice Chandrachud said that 2.95 crore criminal cases are pending in district courts in the country and over 77% of them are more than a year old.

“Many criminal cases are pending as the accused remain absconding for years. For example, the oldest sessions court case in Uttar Pradesh where the accused is absconding is sessions trial 64 of 1976 at Gorakhpur,” he said.

“The major reasons for the delay in disposal of criminal cases is the accused remain absconding, particularly after bail is granted, and secondly, due to non-appearance of official witnesses during the course of the criminal trial for recording evidence,” he said.

“We can use information and communication technology here also. This is what we are working on presently in the e-committee of the Supreme Court,” Justice Chandrachud said.

‘WhatsApp Chats Not Enough Proof That Accused Supplied Drugs to Aryan Khan,’ Says Court

The court granted bail to Aachit Kumar, who was arrested on October 6 by the NCB based on the statement given by Aryan Khan and Arbaaz Merchant.

New Delhi: A special NDPS court in Mumbai while granting bail to Aachit Kumar last week in the cruise drugs case said merely on the basis of WhatsApp chats, it cannot be gathered that he had supplied drugs to co-accused Aryan Khan, the son of Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan, and Arbaaz Merchant.

The court in its detailed order, a copy of which was made available on Sunday, also raised questions on the veracity of the Narcotics Control Bureau’s (NCB) panchnama, which is a record of the witness taken at the time of conducting a search, and said they were fabricated and seemed “suspicious”.

Special Judge V.V. Patil, designated to hear cases related to the Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, granted bail to 22-year-old Kumar on Saturday.

The court in its detailed order observed that except for the WhatsApp chats with Aryan Khan, there is no evidence to show Kumar was indulging in such activities.

Aryan Khan and Merchant, who were arrested in the cruise drugs case on October 3, were granted bail by the Bombay high court last Thursday.

Kumar was arrested on October 6 by the NCB based on the statement given by co-accused – Aryan Khan and Arbaaz Merchant.

Also read: In NCB’s Handling of Aryan Khan Drug Case, a Familiar Pattern Emerges

According to Live Law, 2.6 grams of contraband was recovered from his house, and he was arrested as part of the “ganja trafficking network”.

He was booked under sections 8(c) read with 20(b)(ii)(A) (possession of small quantities of drug), 27a (consumption), 28 (attempt to commit offence) and 29 (conspiracy) of the NDPS Act.

Merely on the basis of WhatsApp chats, it cannot be gathered that Kumar used to supply contraband to Aryan Khan and Arbaaz Merchant, the order said. The judge said that since Khan and Merchant with whom Kumar is alleged to have conspired have been granted bail by the Bombay high court, he was also entitled to bail.

In contrast, while denying bail to Aryan Khan on October 20, Judge Patil had relied heavily on the WhatsApp chats, saying, “WhatsApp chats prima facie reveals accused Aryan Khan is dealing in illicit drug activities for narcotic substances on regular basis. Therefore, it cannot be said that Khan is not likely to commit similar offence while on bail.”

The court accepted Kumar’s counsel’s contention that he was a young boy taking education abroad and there was no instance to show that he acted as a supplier of contraband.

Of the total 20 people arrested in the case, 14 persons have been so far granted bail.

(With inputs from PTI)

Aryan Khan Walks Out After Nearly Four Weeks of Imprisonment in Cruise Drugs Case

Actor Shah Rukh Khan’s son was granted bail by the Bombay high court on Thursday.

Mumbai: Aryan Khan, son of Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan, walked out of the Arthur Road prison on Saturday, October 30, nearly four weeks after he was held on October 3 during a drug raid on a cruise ship off the Mumbai coast.

In a case that has seen pitched media attention, Aryan Khan was arrested by the Narcotics Control Bureau and booked under sections of the Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (NDPS) for possession, consumption, sale/purchase of banned drugs and conspiracy and abetment.

Aryan’s counsel has argued in court that no drugs were found on him and that there was no conspiracy. The NCB has relied on WhatsApp chats to attempt to prove that the 23-year-old was a regular consumer of drugs.

While the role of the NCB itself has come under the scanner, amidst larger conversation on what many believe is the targeting of a Muslim star, the case has come under additional spotlight with sensational allegations levelled against the investigating officer Sameer Wankhede, by the Nationalist Congress Party. Two witnesses, one of them Prabhakar Sail, has also claimed to have been forced to sign on a blank paper. Meanwhile, a controversial witness whose selfie with Aryan Khan – taken hours after his arrest –  went viral was detained in Pune.

Aryan came out of the prison shortly after 11 am, a day after a special court issued his release memo. A large crowd of Shah Rukh Khan’s fans had gathered outside the prison since morning. A sizeable media contingent was also present.

Besides local police, an SRPF team was also present and barricades were put up outside the prison to control crowds, a police officer told the news agency PTI.

The news agency ANI reported that jail officials had opened the bail box outside Arthur Road jail at about 5:30 am today to gather bail orders.


Immediately after walking out of the prison, he entered a waiting car and drove to his house Mannat in suburban Bandra, 12 km away.

He was granted bail by the Bombay high court on Thursday. Shah Rukh Khan’s actor friend Juhi Chawla stood as surety Aryan before the special court, designated to hear cases related to the NDPS Act.

The high court on Friday afternoon made available its operative order in which it imposed 14 bail conditions on Aryan Khan and his co-accused in the case, Arbaaz Merchant and Munmun Dhamecha, who were also granted bail, stipulating their release on a personal bond of Rs 1 lakh each with one or two sureties of the same amount.

The relief to the trio came just a day before the high court was scheduled to take a two-week break for Diwali.

In the five-page order, signed by Justice N.W. Sambre, the high court said the trio will have to surrender their passports before the NDPS court and shall not leave India without taking permission from the special court.

Also, they will have to attend the NCB office each Friday between 11 am and 2 pm to mark their presence, the HC said.

The judge will give a detailed bail order with reasons next week.

So far, 20 people have been arrested in the case and two of them were granted bail by the special NDPS court earlier this week.

(With PTI inputs)

Bombay HC Imposes 14 Conditions On Aryan Khan For Bail

Among other conditions, the court directed Khan to pay a personal bond of Rs 1 lakh with one or two sureties of the same amount.

Mumbai: The Bombay high court on Friday said Aryan Khan, son of superstar Shah Rukh Khan, shall be released on a personal bond of Rs 1 lakh with one or two sureties of the same amount.

A copy of the five-page operative order was signed by Justice N.W. Sambre on Friday afternoon.

This would help Aryan Khan’s advocates to secure his release from the Arthur Road prison in central Mumbai, where he is lodged, by evening.

Aryan Khan’s advocates will now take the certified copy of the HC order to the special court that is hearing the cases related to the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, along with the requisite documents and sureties.

Also read: Aryan Khan and the Right Wing’s Disdain for Bollywood’s Portrayal of Progressive Ideals

After verification, the special court will issue the release papers which would be handed over to the Arthur Road prison to secure Aryan Khan’s release.

In its order, the high court has imposed 14 conditions on Aryan Khan and co-accused Arbaaz Merchant and Munmun Dhamecha, who were also granted bail.

A single bench of Justice N W Sambre had on Thursday granted bail to Aryan Khan. 25 days after he was arrested during a drug raid on a cruise ship off the Mumbai coast. The high court had said it would provide a copy of its order on Friday.

(PTI)

Bombay HC Grants Bail to Aryan Khan, 2 Others After 3-Day Hearing in Cruise Drugs Case

Shah Rukh Khan’s son, along with Arbaaz Merchant and Munmun Dhamecha, are expected to be released no earlier than Friday or Saturday.

New Delhi: The Bombay high court has allowed bail to Shah Rukh Khan’s son Aryan Khan, and co-accused Arbaaz Merchant and Munmun Dhamecha, in the high profile cruise drugs case.

Khan, Merchant and Dhamecha were arrested by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) on October 3 and booked under sections of the Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (NDPS) for possession, consumption, sale or purchase of banned drugs, conspiracy and abetment.

The three have been incarcerated for 25 days. Twenty-three-year-old Khan is at present in judicial custody and lodged at the Arthur Road prison, where Merchant is also imprisoned. Dhamecha is at the Byculla Prison.

On Thursday, the court pronounced a one-line order admitting the bail applications.

A single bench of Justice N.W. Sambre said, “All three pleas are allowed. I will pass detailed orders by tomorrow evening.”

When Rohatgi asked for cash bail, the court pressed for surety and said it will announce the bail conditions tomorrow.

“I could have given the order also tomorrow. But I gave it today,” Justice Sambre said.

Also read: In NCB’s Handling of Aryan Khan Drug Case, a Familiar Pattern Emerges

Aryan’s counsel, senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, said after the three-day hearing that all three accused are expected to be released by Friday or Saturday.

The bench heard senior advocates Mukul Rohatgi and Amit Desai for Aryan and Arbaaz Merchant and advocate Kashiff Ali for Munmun Dhamecha.

“Until the high court releases the order, the three will not be released from jail, so we request your patience,” advocate Satish Maneshinde told reporters outside the court today.

On October 20, a special judge of an NDPS court V.V. Patil had denied bail to Aryan Khan primarily citing two reasons – voluntary confession statements recorded by NCB officials under Section 67 of the NDPS Act, in which Aryan Khan and his friend admitted that they were in possession of substances, and Khan’s WhatsApp chats.

In both these cited reasons, it appears that the court did not follow precedent and established principles of law, an analysis on The Wire had explored.

Khan and the two others had then approached Bombay high court.

After the hearing on Wednesday, which went on for over two hours, Justice N.W. Sambre had said he would hear Additional Solicitor General Anil Singh, who is representing the NCB, on Thursday.

“Tomorrow we will try to finish it,” the judge had said.

The case has been marked by allegations of extortion by a witness, Prabhakar Sail, and the Nationalist Congress Party against NCB investigator Sameer Wankhede. The latter has moved Bombay high court against possible coercive action by Mumbai police. Meanwhile, a controversial witness, K.P. Gosavi, whose selfie with Khan had gone viral after his arrest, has been detained.

On Thursday, Additional Solicitor General Anil Singh, representing the NCB, told the high court that the case against the accused is not for consumption but for ‘conscious possession and plan to consume’, according to Bar and Bench.

Singh sought to highlight WhatsApp chats of Khan and said it “cannot be a coincidence that so many people were on the cruise” and “eight were found with drugs.”

He said that the total quantity of drugs recovered is “commercial quantity” under the NDPS Act.

Rohatgi, representing Khan, said, “There was no conspiracy because there was no meeting of minds. There was no discussion that they will meet, that they will get the substance and smoke – that is conspiracy.”

He also said that the only person he knew was Arbaaz Merchant.

In NCB’s Handling of Aryan Khan Drug Case, a Familiar Pattern Emerges

From leaking private chats to a section of the media to the narrative around the case constantly changing, the investigation has raised more questions than providing answers.

Mumbai: On October 26, as the Bombay high court began to hear the arguments in the bail application moved by Aryan Khan, actor Shahrukh Khan’s son, India Today TV ran an “exclusive” story about the “incriminating WhatsApp chat” between Khan and his friend and budding actress Ananya Pandey.

The conversation, the channel claimed, discussed procurement of drugs. This chat, as it appeared, was categorically leaked to a section of the media. Within minutes, the news broke on a few more TV channels. The chat, the defence lawyers have argued during the bail proceedings, was accessed and made public even before being placed on record. These chats, they claimed, were read out of context and intentionally leaked to colour public opinion.

There is a clear pattern that has emerged in the way the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) has functioned in the recent past, especially when it deals with celebrities and high-profile cases. In politically motivated cases, involving high-profile persons, the action seems to play not in a courtroom but outside it.

In the alleged drug party on a Goa-bound cruise involving Khan and others, right from day one, there are several allegations and questions raised about the way in which the case was handled. Khan was arrested on October 3. He was allegedly one of the many persons who had consumed drugs at the party. For an allegation of this nature, the NCB should have first conducted a medical examination on him and other arrested persons. Inexplicably, the NCB decided to not get the 23-year-old’s urine and blood samples tested – a common practice in any drug case.

Since the day of the arrest, Khan’s lawyers have been harping over the absence of one of the most crucial aspects in the case. The NCB, which while arresting Khan and two others – Arbaaz Merchant and Munmum Dhamecha – had applied sections of only consumption and later shifted their story to conspiracy and claimed a larger “international drug link” was involved. The claim, even 24 days since the raid, has not been substantiated.

The arrest memo drafted soon after Khan and other accused persons were taken into custody merely mentions “personal consumption”. But to substantiate this allegation too, the NCB has not attributed any quantity of drug to Khan or Merchant.

The Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act criminalises consumption and the maximum punishment under the Act is one year. Senior counsel Amit Desai, appearing for Khan, during the bail argument has repeatedly questioned the NCB’s intention to go for custody when as per the procedure laid down under section 41 A of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), the accused persons should have been issued notice to appear before the investigating team instead of seeking their physical custody. Khan and others have been in custody for 24 days now. This crucial aspect was recently emphasised on by the Andhra Pradesh high court in an NDPS case.

Two persons – Avin Sahu and Manish Rajgarhia – who too were arrested along with Khan were granted bail by the special NDPS court on October 26. They were ‘guests’ on the cruise and are the first of the 20 people who have been arrested to be granted bail in the case so far. Sahu is accused of consumption and Ragarhia, interestingly, was shown in possession of 2.4 grams of marijuana. Special judge V.V. Patil, who had earlier denied bail to Khan, Merchant and Dhamecha, passed the order granting bail to Sahu and Rajgarhia.

The bail application of Khan, Dhamecha and Merchant is scheduled for a third consecutive day of hearing on October 28 before the Bombay high court.

The defence has called the investigation a media trial and that Khan is made a scapegoat only because he is the son of a famous man. The NCB zonal head, Sameer Wankhede, who is heading the investigation, in one of his recent media interviews had claimed that his office has burst several narcotics rackets in recent years.

“The media does not highlight the news if we catch a normal person, but when there is a case involving a celebrity, the news is everywhere,” Wankhede had said. But it is also a fact that in those cases, the NCB has not leaked private chats to the media. Actress Rhea Chakraborty’s chats were also leaked last year.

Following the death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput by suicide, the manner in which his partner, Chakraborty, was hounded by media and the Central agencies, including the NCB, is seen to be playing out in Khan’s case too. But this time, unlike the past year, the Mahavikas Aghadi government in the state is more prepared and is poking holes in the procedure and is seen to be countering the NCB’s claims in a more combative manner.

NCB zonal director Sameer Wankhede. Photo: PTI

At the forefront is senior Nationalist Congress Party leader Nawab Malik, who has taken it upon himself to “expose” Wankhede and his ways. Malik’s son-in- law was booked in another NDPS case a few months ago, only to be later given a clean chit. He might have an axe to grind here but the evidence that he has brought forth so far questions the veracity of the NCB’s case.

For instance, let us look at the presence of the two panch (spot) witnesses in the case. These witnesses – one with a clear BJP link and another with a past crime record – were present on the cruise at the time of the raid. Within days of arrest, Malik made an explosive revelation by posting pictures of K.P. Gosavi, a self-styled private detective in Malaysia, with Khan. Gosavi, taken along by the NCB as a “respected person” – a prerequisite to qualify as a panch witness – has cases of forgery against him. Another person, Manish Bhanushali, is a well-known BJP worker. Bhanushali was seen posing with Merchant.

Since then, Malik has continued to make sensational claims – from an alleged conspiracy to malign the state government to falsely implicating Khan and others in a “fake case” and illegal tapping. During each of his press appearances, Malik has presented “evidence” to back his claims up. The most recent instance was when he alleged that Wankhede produced a “fake caste certificate” to become an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) officer. In the process, Wankhede’s religious identity has also been raked up. Wankhede has claimed that he has been unfairly targeted and his family has been dragged into murky politics.

Malik’s attacks have led one of the witnesses, Prabhakar Sail, to come ahead and make allegations of corruption and extortion against Wankhede. Sail, who claims to be Gosavi’s bodyguard, is one of the witnesses in the case. Sail, in an affidavit, has claimed that he overheard Gosavi speak to one Sam D’Souza about a Rs “18- crore deal”. Of this, Sail has claimed that Rs 8 crore was Wankhede’s share.

Sail claims that he was made to sign blank papers by Wankhede. After Sail, Shekhar Kamble, a witness in another case involving a Nigerian national has also claimed that he was made to sign 10-12 blank papers by Wankhede and his team.

Cruise Drugs Case: No Bail Yet for Aryan Khan, HC to Hear NCB’s Arguments on Thursday

Aryan Khan’s counsel Mukul Rohatgi, co-accused Arbaaz Merchant’s lawyer Amit Desai and advocate Ali Kaashif Khan Deshmukh who appeared for Munmun Dhamecha completed their arguments.

New Delhi: The Bombay high court will continue hearing the bail plea of Aryan Khan, the son of Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan who has been arrested in a drugs case, on Thursday, October 28, when the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) will present its arguments.

Aryan Khan’s counsel Mukul Rohatgi, co-accused Arbaaz Merchant’s lawyer Amit Desai and advocate Ali Kaashif Khan Deshmukh who appeared for Munmun Dhamecha completed their arguments.

After the hearing which went on for over two hours, Justice N.W. Sambre said he would hear Additional Solicitor General Anil Singh, who is representing the NCB, on Thursday.

“Tomorrow we will try to finish it,” the judge said.

In Wednesday’s hearing, according to Live Law, senior counsel Amit Desai, appearing for Merchant, contended that the maximum case against him is of personal consumption of drugs, and denied the allegations of “conspiracy” for illicit trade of drugs. He contended that the three are not accused of ‘use’ as defined under the NDPS Act as per the arrest memo.

The NCB had on October 20 told a sessions court that section 29 of the NDPS Act, pertaining to “conspiracy”, was applicable in this case, therefore denying bail to Aryan Khan.

According to Indian Express, Desai further stated that the intention to consume is not applicable “as no medical test was done.” “We are arrested for an offence which is not committed,” he added.

Also read: Why Aryan Khan? And Other Questions About NCB’s ‘Cruise Drugs Party’ Raid

“What is abundantly clearly is that there are no WhatsApp chats that connect conspiracy to the rave party (Mumbai cruise ship),” he said.

Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for Aryan Khan, referred to the arrest memo, the Indian Express reported. Referring to the Madhu Limaye judgment of the Supreme Court, he said, “Law requires you need to give true and right ground for arrest. There has to be connection with me (Aryan) and Arbaaz. Section 50 of CrPC stipulates that persons should be informed of arrest and right of bail. Article 22 of the constitution is important to us. That article flows from Article 21 (Right to life and personal liberty).”

“Seeing the remand application was misleading, as if to make one feel that the large quantities mentioned in that were recovered from Aryan Khan… Remand application must give and true and correct facts,” he said.

Advocate Ali Kaashif Khan Deshmukh, appearing for Dhamecha, said: “I (Munmun) was invited on the cruise and was in a room along with one Somiya and Baldev when the NCB came for the alleged search. Arrest memo is made against me, but there is no material to incriminate me. I am a 28-year-old woman who came here for my future in fashion industry and I have got no connection with other accused. Just that I was present in the room where drug was found, therefore I am in the case. Somiya and Baldev were allowed to go.”

“NCB failed to prove who bought the drugs which are being foisted on me. If they can’t find where it came from, then all 1,300 people (on the cruise) should have been arrested in the case. Even if my medical test was conducted and even if it’s done in future, I am sure there wouldn’t be anything found on me. They have completely failed to show any of my nexus and connection,” he added.

Additional Solicitor General Anil Singh will respond to all three bail pleas on behalf of the NCB, as per the report.

The hearing will start at 2:30 PM on Thursday.

(With inputs from PTI)

Watch | Lower Judiciary’s Failings Making India a Police State: Dushyant Dave

Speaking to Karan Thapar, the senior advocate says the lower judiciary’s approach to the Aryan Khan case reflects a complete lack of understanding of the law.

In a hard-hitting and at times brutal critique of India’s lower judiciary, one of the country’s most senior and respected lawyers has said that increasingly the lower judiciary and the magistracy is either not conversant with the law or not willing to apply it. Dushyant Dave calls this “a clear case of insubordination” and adds “it is becoming more prevalent in recent years”. Dave also says that frequently the lower judiciary and magistracy is intimidated by the government or by the high profile cases that come before it.

To sum up his position, he says: “There is something seriously wrong with the subordinate judiciary … India is increasingly becoming a police state.” These are three reasons why he believes that people like Aryan Khan can be arrested and jailed for 23 days without getting bail whereas, in fact, Dave believes that bail in the case should have been granted by the magistrate’s court on the very first day.

In a 14-minute interview with Karan Thapar for The Wire, Dushyant Dave, a former president of the Supreme Court Bar Association, said with specific reference to the lower judiciary’s handling of the Aryan Khan case: “The entire approach of the lower judiciary reflects a complete lack of understanding of the law.” He also said in this case the lower judiciary’s decisions reflect a lack of understanding of the rulings of both the Bombay high court and the Supreme Court.

Dave said lower judges are “intimidated again and again”. He said judges either get intimidated by the high profile cases brought before them or by the fact senior people like the assistant solicitor general appear on behalf of the government.

Summing up, Dushyant Dave said, “There is something seriously wrong with the subordinate judiciary.” He added, “The judiciary is making mistake after mistake in applying the law.”

Dave ended the interview by saying that as a result of lower court judges failing to stand up for the rights of Indian citizens, “we are increasingly becoming a police state”. He said India is “supposedly a democracy but to make it function properly you need all institutions to function as well”.

The above is a paraphrased precis of Dushyant Dave’s interview with Karan Thapar for The Wire. Though recounted from memory it is not inaccurate. There is, however, more in the interview. Please see the interview to fully appreciate Dushyant Dave’s viewpoints.

After a Day of Hearing, Bombay HC Adjourns Aryan Khan’s Bail Case Till Tomorrow

Mukul Rohatgi argued before the Bombay high court on Tuesday that no case was made out against Aryan – no drugs were recovered from his possession and no medical test has proved that he consumed drugs.

New Delhi: The Bombay high court on Tuesday evening adjourned the Aryan Khan bail case hearing till tomorrow. Senior advocate and former attorney general of India Mukul Rohatgi was appearing for Aryan, Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan’s son who has been arrested by the Narcotics Control Bureau.

The NCB on Tuesday opposed Aryan’s bail plea, alleging the 23-year-old was not just a consumer of drugs, but also involved in illicit drug trafficking. The agency also claimed that Aryan Khan and a woman named Pooja Dadlani, Shah Rukh Khan’s manager, were tampering with the evidence and witnesses in the case in an attempt to derail the investigation.

Rohatgi argued before the Bombay high court on Tuesday that no case was made out against Aryan – no drugs were recovered from his possession and no medical test has proved that he consumed drugs. “There was no occasion to arrest my client (Aryan Khan),” Rohatgi said, according to the Indian Express.

He also said that Aryan could not be held responsible for the drugs recovered from Arbaaz Merchant’s shoes. “It was not in my control, what was found in Merchant’s shoe. Arbaaz is not my servant, he is not under my control, so there is no conspiracy,” Rohatgi submitted on Aryan’s behalf.

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“There is no consumption, there is no possession. What is put against me is that I came with Merchant, so I had ‘conscious possession’. It is far fetched. They say it was known to me and I had control. My case is that it is not conscious possession at all. What somebody had in their shoe or wherever is not my concern,” Rohatgi continued, according to Bar and Bench.

Aryan’s advocates submitted to the high court an additional note, stating that he has nothing to do with the allegations and counter allegations that are being circulated between the NCB’s zonal director Sameer Wankhede and certain political personalities.

The NCB on Tuesday filed its affidavit in response to the bail plea filed by Aryan Khan in the high court.

Aryan was taken into custody on October 2 after a raid on a cruise party that he was attending. He was placed under arrest on October 3 and charged with offences under Section 8(c), 20(b), 27, 28, 29 and 35 under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.

Both the magistrate and sessions court have so far rejected his bail plea.

(With PTI inputs)