The vacation bench has granted Sameer Wankhede interim protection from arrest until June 8 in the bribery case filed against him. The Bombay High Court extended this protection in relation to allegations that Wankhede demanded favors from Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan during the arrest of Khan’s son, Aryan Khan, in a drug case in 2021.
However, the bench, consisting of Justices Abhay Ahuja and MM Sathaye, imposed certain conditions on Wankhede:
- He is prohibited from sharing any information regarding the case or investigation through WhatsApp or any other medium.
- He is not allowed to issue press releases.
- He must refrain from tampering with evidence under any circumstances.
Additionally, the court ordered Wankhede to submit an affidavit by the end of the day.
These conditions were imposed after objections were raised by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) regarding Wankhede’s disclosure of text messages with Shah Rukh Khan in his petition and sharing them with the media. The CBI counsel argued that the messages referred to were exchanged when Aryan Khan was in jail, and Wankhede treated Shah Rukh Khan’s request as a character certificate.
During the court proceedings, it was revealed that Wankhede had leaked the chats with Shah Rukh Khan, which were attached to his petition. The court expressed dissatisfaction with Wankhede’s behavior and questioned why he circulated rumors and went to the media after submitting himself to the court.
Wankhede’s lawyer assured the court that his client had not distributed any chats, and only the chats attached to the petition were reported in the media. The CBI counsel emphasized that Wankhede should cooperate with the investigating officer and refrain from communicating with the media or anyone else regarding the FIR. Failure to do so may lead to his arrest.
After considering both sides, the court decided to extend the protection granted on May 19 until June 8. The case originated from a drug investigation by the Mumbai unit of the NCB, which resulted in 20 arrests, including Aryan Khan, during a search-and-seizure operation on a Mumbai-Goa cruise on October 2, 2021. Aryan Khan was later granted bail on October 28, 2021, and was cleared of charges on May 27, 2022.
Subsequently, the CBI filed an FIR against Wankhede, accusing him of bribery, undue influence, abetment, criminal conspiracy, and extortion. Initially, Wankhede sought protection from the Delhi High Court, but due to jurisdictional objections raised by the CBI, he withdrew his petition and was granted permission to approach the appropriate forum. The present petition seeking the dismissal of the FIR and interim relief was filed by attorney Karan Jain with the Bombay High Court.
