Mumbai: In a startling revelation in the Cordelia cruise case, the FIR against former NCB zonal head Sameer Wankhede revealed that KP Gosavi, an 'independent witness' in the case had threatened to frame actor Shah Rukh Khan's son Aryan Khan if his family does not agree to pay Rs 25 crores.
The FIR mentions that KP Gosavi and his aide Sanvile D'Souza conspired to extort an amount of Rs. 25 crores from the family members of Aryan Khan by threatening them of offences for possession of narcotics substances. This amount was finally settled for Rs. 18 Crores. A token amount of Rs. 50 Lakhs as bribe money was also taken by Gosavi but later a part of this amount was returned back.
Sameer Wankhede hit the headlines in October 2021 for his drug bust aboard a cruise in which Aryan Khan got falsely implicated and had to be in custody for 22 days. Wankhede was transferred to the Directorate General of Taxpayer Services when a probe was launched for his shoddy investigation.
Also read: CBI files FIR against Aryan Khan case officer Sameer Wankhede in corruption case
In the FIR, it was mentioned that Wankhede had directed Vishwa Vijay Singh, the superintendent of NCB, to let KP Gosavi handle the Aryan Khan while taking him to the NCB office. This gave Gosavi the opportunity to click a selfie with Aryan Khan and record an audioclip. The selfie was widely circulated on social media raising questions on the NCB about how an independent person can be allowed to be close to the accused or even allowed inside its office.
KP Gosavi and Prabhakar Sail were independent witnesses in the case. Wankhede's high-handedness gave a free hand to KP Gosavi in order to create a visual impression that he was having custody of the Aryan Khan and escorting or dragging him towards the NCB Mumbai office.
Many of the allegations that the CBI made against Wankhede were first flagged by NCP leader Nawab Malik who was known for his regular spats with the then NCB zonal director. Malik, who threatened to expose Wankhede, is now in jail on corruption charges. Prabhakar Sail, the other 'witness' named by the NCB also raised similar allegations. Sail passed away last year following a heart attack.
Following the raids at his place, Sameer Wankhede maintained that he was being 'rewarded' for being a patriot. The CBI had pointed out disproportionate assets belonging to Wankhede which he claims, he acquired before joining service. Wankhede could not give account of his frequent foreign visits as well.
