Karan Johar had mentioned that he doesn’t know Prasad personally and that he or Dharma Productions can’t “be made accountable for what individuals do of their private lives”. (Specific Picture by Dilip Kagda)
A former govt producer of Dharmatic Leisure, the sister concern of Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions, instructed a Mumbai court docket on Sunday that the Narcotics Management Bureau (NCB) had pressured him to falsely implicate Johar and different executives of the movie manufacturing firm in a case of alleged consumption of medicine.
The previous Dharmatic Leisure worker, Kshitij Prasad, was known as in by NCB on Friday in reference to its investigation of the alleged “medication nexus” in Bollywood, and positioned below arrest on Saturday.
The company’s Deputy DG (South West), Mutha Ashok Jain, refuted the allegation, and mentioned the investigation was being carried out in a “skilled method”.
Prasad (30), was a part of Dharmatic Leisure in November 2019. The NCB claimed {that a} “roll joint believed to be stays of smoked ganja” was seized from his home. The company instructed the court docket on Sunday that in keeping with the assertion of one other accused within the case, Prasad had made financial institution and money funds to the tune of Rs 3,500 every on round a dozen events between Could and July, for the acquisition of ganja.
Prasad’s lawyer Satish Maneshinde mentioned that his consumer – who was produced by video-conference earlier than the metropolitan Justice of the Peace – had knowledgeable the court docket that he had been “harassed and blackmailed” by NCB investigators to make a press release.
Maneshinde mentioned Prasad had instructed the court docket that his assertion had been recorded by Sameer Wankhede, in-charge of the Mumbai unit of the NCB, “whereby numerous patently false claims have been inserted regardless of his (Prasad’s) protests”, and the assertion was not recorded as per his narration.
Maneshinde claimed that Prasad was not instructed whether or not he was being positioned below arrest, nor was he permitted to talk to his lawyer. He was, nonetheless, instructed that he must keep the evening on the NCB workplace on Friday as his assertion was but to be accomplished.
“The NCB officers other than Sameer Wankhede have been courteous to Kshitij and offered him with a snug sleeping association. The following morning when his assertion recording resumed, Kshitij was categorically knowledgeable by Sameer Wankhede within the presence of a number of different officers, that since he was related to Dharma Productions, they’d let him off if he implicated Karan Johar and a few others, falsely alleging that they consumed medication. Kshitij refused to adjust to this regardless of the strain being mounted on him as he didn’t know any of those individuals personally and didn’t want to falsely implicate anybody,” Maneshinde mentioned.
Wankhede denied the allegations. “It’s routine follow on the a part of the accused to make such allegations,” he mentioned.
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NCB Deputy DG Jain mentioned: “The investigation is being carried out in knowledgeable method and there’s no supposed goal aside from what’s revealed through the investigation. The allegations (by Prasad) are completely unfaithful.”
Looking for Prasad’s custody, the NCB submitted that arrested accused Ankush Arneja had mentioned in his assertion that he had equipped cannabis to Prasad by means of accused Sanket Patel on numerous events. Patel, who was arrested and granted bail, has allegedly instructed the NCB that he delivered 50 grams of ganja to Prasad exterior his residence in Andheri round 12 occasions between Could and July this yr. The NCB claimed that it had seized the “stays of smoked ganja” and sure paperwork and devices from Prasad’s house. In accordance with the company, Prasad is “not directly linked with accused Anuj Keshwani from whom business amount of narcotics was seized”.
“Subsequently, it’s necessay to interrogate in deep as to whom he was delivering contraband in Bollywood,” the NCB mentioned in its remand software. NCB additionally instructed the court docket that Prasad was not cooperating with the investigation, and sought his custody till October 5.
In his order granting NCB custody till October 3, Metropolitan Justice of the Peace V J Dongre mentioned that as a result of severe nature of the offence, detailed custodial interrogation of the accused is “justifiable to disclose the reality”.
Maneshinde mentioned Prasad had instructed the court docket that he had been made to sit down on the ground with Wankhede placing his shoe close to Prasad’s face, which “traumatised” him. Prasad was “extraordinarily fatigued and shaken” after 48 hours in custody, and requested that he be allowed to talk to a lawyer or a member of his household, Maneshinde mentioned.
“Sameer Wankhede knowledgeable him (Prasad) that if he wished to be granted a name, he ought to signal the assertion they’d ready which he may retract later,” Maneshinde mentioned. “Kshitij was unaware of the legalities concerned and had by no means even come throughout this time period ‘retraction of assertion’. Sameer Wankhede then knowledgeable him that if he didn’t signal the assertion, the strain would proceed to mount and he wouldn’t be given entry to his household or lawyer. On the finish of almost 50 hours of interrogation, humiliation and torment, Kshitij in his desperation to talk to his lawyer or household, unwillingly and below threats signed the assertion.”
In a press release launched on Saturday, Johar mentioned he doesn’t know Prasad personally, and that he or Dharma Productions can’t “be made accountable for what individuals do of their private lives”. Up to now, 20 have been arrested within the case together with actor Rhea Chakraborty.
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