Inquiry set up due to grave allegations against Wankhede, NCB tells HC

: The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) has submitted to the Bombay High Court that there were serious and grave allegations of irregularities against its former zonal director Sameer Wankhede and hence a preliminary inquiry was initiated against him.

The agency filed its affidavit last week in response to Wankhede’s petition challenging the notices issued to him on the NCB’s preliminary inquiry over irregularities in a drugs case related to actor Sushant Singh Rajput’s death. The affidavit filed by Sanjay Singh, deputy director general of the NCB, sought dismissal of Wankhede’s plea, claiming that he was “forum hunting” and “delaying and prolonging” the inquiry initiated against him.

On April 1, a division bench of Justices Revati Mohite Dere and Manjusha Deshpande had accepted the NCB’s assurance that no further notice would be issued to Wankhede pending hearing of his petition.

The court had then also directed the agency to file its affidavit to Wankhede’s plea The NCB in its affidavit said Wankhede has filed multiple litigations on the same issue including the one before the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT), which had refused to interfere.

“The petitioner (Wankhede) has filed multiple rounds of litigation to evade the preliminary inquiry. The petitioner, by filing multiple litigations before different forums, is prolonging and delaying the inquiry,” the affidavit said.

The agency in its affidavit said the complaints it has received against Wankhede of irregularities were “serious and grave”.