The drug racket case rocked Bollywood following the death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput is based majorly on his then girlfriend Rhea Chakraborty’s statement. An internal NCB report reviewed by News18 has led to questions over the initial investigation
Proving the involvement of high-profile celebrities in the alleged Bollywood drugs racket based solely on the statement of Rhea Chakraborty is turning out to be a difficult task, according to an internal report of the Narcotics Control Bureau. The report, reviewed by News18.com, hints at a lack of credible evidence and seizures against the accused.
The case, which is yet to be charge-sheeted despite a months-long delay, hit headlines in 2020 when Rhea Chakraborty was arrested following the death by suicide of her then-boyfriend and actor Sushant Singh Rajput. The latter’s family filed a case of abetment to suicide against the 29-year-old, which ran parallel to the investigation into alleged drug procurement by her.
The latter case, which stemmed from Chakraborty’s purported WhatsApp chats, snowballed with the naming of A-list celebrities, including Deepika Padukone, Kriti Sanon, Rakul Preet Singh, Sara Ali Khan, Ayush Sharma and others.
The Mumbai Police, Enforcement Directorate (ED), Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) were brought in to investigate various angles in the intertwined cases.
The NCB’s internal report has, however, revealed how the probe conducted by the initial team of investigators into the drugs case has made it difficult for the current team to prove the charges and how the case is based majorly on Chakraborty’s statement. Various key team members, including the supervising officer, who probed the case moved out from the NCB and a new team is now investigating the case.
The report, which was submitted to NCB Director-General SN Pradhan a few months ago, has mentioned all persons named and questioned in the case, which is officially titled NCB/MZU/CR-15/2020.
News18.com sent multiple queries on the report to D-G Pradhan, but received no response at the time of publication. The story will be updated as and when a response is received from the NCB.
What the report says
The report reveals point-by-point the lack of credible digital or scientific evidence which has made the case weak.
“There is evidence in the form of retrieved WhatsApp chats and corroborative statements by witnesses/alleged persons about their acts of possession and consumption of Narcotic Drugs. However, with regard to possession, the investigation has not shed light into the quantity of Narcotic Drug possessed by them,” the report says.
The report further says that there has been no seizure in the case and that the investigation could not pin-point the quantity of narcotic drugs possessed by the named persons which was then consumed. It, however, says they may be charged for possession of small quantity of drugs.
The report, which gives details about the accused and what they said during questioning, mentions in the conclusive paragraph that Rhea Chakraborty confirmed in her voluntary statements the “incriminating” WhatsApp chats with other persons. It says that the contents of these chats were in contravention of the NDPS Act.
The report adds that the accused persons, during questioning, did state that they tried to procure, possess and consume narcotic drugs. “However, they also stated that they did not eventually end up procuring, possessing or consuming Narcotic Drugs in the context,” it reads.
“There is evidence against these persons i.e. attempt to commit an offence which is punishable under the same section. There is evidence in the form of retrieved WhatsApp chats and corroborative statements by witnesses/other alleged persons about their acts of violation of NDPS Act, 1985. However, there is no seizure of any substance covered under NDPS Act from their possession or from anywhere else in this case,” the report adds, raising questions over the investigation done by a different set of officers who have left the NCB.
The report concludes that: “As regard to the other alleged persons, they have either denied that their WhatsApp chats with Rhea Chakraborty or in WhatsApp group or have stated that the chats made were not in the context of drug procurement, possession or consumption (sic). In the absence of evidences against them in the form of credible WhatsApp chats or other digital evidence, proving their involvement solely based on the voluntary statement of Rhea Chakraborty will be difficult.”
Who was named in the case?
The Narcotics Control Bureau stepped in to investigate the alleged drug procurement and consumption case that cropped up following the death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput. An SIT was formed and the team proceeded to Mumbai where Rhea Chakraborty appeared before the investigating officer and gave her voluntary statement.
In her voluntary statement, Chakraborty allegedly admitted that she had been procuring and consuming narcotics drugs, including marijuana and hashish.
She was not arrested in the case as there was no seizure of contraband and any Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) case depends primarily and solely on the recovery of contraband.
Chakraborty, was, however arrested in a different case in Mumbai Zonal Unit following the recovery of contraband from a person who had allegedly been her supplier.
In her voluntary statement, Chakraborty also reportedly mentioned the names of multiple people who had allegedly helped her in procuring drugs and had also allegedly consumed narcotic substances with her or in her presence.
The Enforcement Directorate had shared with the NCB the cloned image of Chakraborty’s mobile phone, which reportedly contained multiple chats with various persons regarding procurement and consumption of drugs. NCB officials later questioned several celebrities, but there has been no development in the case in the last one year. The charge-sheet is also yet to be filed.
Following celebrities have so far been named in connection with the case: Jayanti Shah, Shruti Modi, Gaurav Arya, Simone Khambatta, Rakul Preet Singh, Sara Ali Khan, Deepika Padukone, Mukesh Chhabra, Prakash Kovelamudi, Madhu Mantena Verma, Amritpal Singh Bindra, Anaaya Udhas, Monil Batra, Varun Talreja, Ayush Sharma, Siddharth Pithani, Anandi Dhawan, Kunal Jagdish Jani, Rishabh Thakkar, Rajiv Chim, Pia Trivedi, Karan Panthaky, Bilal Amrohi, Sachi Amrohi, Namrata Shirodkar, Mahesh Shetty, Samuel Hoakip, Ashok, Abbas Khaloi, Kushal Zaveri, Vikas Gupta, Rohini Ayyar and Sanjana Sanghi.
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