The Wankhede case must be investigated more deeply for amendments to be made
Posted Date – Fri, 5/19/23 at 12:15pm
The Wankhede case must be investigated more deeply for amendments to be made
Hyderabad: The shocking turn in the Cordelia cruise drug bust, with the CBI accusing ex-Narcotics Control Board (NCB) officer Sameer Wankhede of soliciting Rs 250 crore in bribes from the family of Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan, has exposed deeper problems plaguing the organisation. Investigations should be conducted in good faith and in a fair manner. Wankhede, a 2008 IRS officer who was in charge of NCB’s Mumbai area at the time of the events in October 2021, has now been summoned by the CBI on charges that he, along with three others, was involved in a blackmail attempt and had threatened to implicate Shah Rukh Khan’s son Aryan Khan. Framed celebrities in controversial cases to gain media attention have been a dangerous tendency of some officials in the central investigative agency. In the process, huge damage was done to the reputation of the defendant and his family. The high-profile drug case involving the son of a Bollywood superstar is another example of how some overzealous officials have gone wild attacking celebrities on flimsy grounds. Ultimately, such cases do not stand up to legal scrutiny. The tainted official is now under the scrutiny of investigative agencies for owning assets disproportionate to his known sources of income, in addition to making misleading declarations about expenses incurred while he was traveling abroad. Following the raid, the NCB later claimed to have seized cocaine, mephedrone and marijuana and arrested 17 people, including Aryan. However, after a month of harassment and a relentless hunt, Aryan Khan and others were exonerated, exposing holes in the NCB’s operations.
The high-profile case was a turning point for the agency, as it dealt a severe blow to its credibility and professionalism. The sordid stories have tarnished the image of the NCB, the nodal agency that enforces drug laws in the country and coordinates its work with international agencies such as the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. The key question in this case is whether Wankhede’s superiors turned a blind eye to his excesses, or whether some of them were in collusion with him. The NCB, tasked with detecting and disrupting organized drug cartels, cannot do its job effectively if it shows laxness in weeding out errant officers. The Wankhede case must be investigated more in depth so that amendments can be made. Sending a strong message of zero tolerance for corruption can deter domestic and international drug cartels. In addition, focus on catching big fish for drug trafficking. NCB officers should not be wasting their resources and time on cases involving possession of small amounts of drugs. Instead, the focus should be on organized drug terror and the international mafia. Equally important is holding accountable overzealous officials for abusing their positions.
