NCB questions Shraddha, Sara, confronts Deepika with manager Karishma
Bollywood came alive —albeit for wrong reasons — on Saturday, as the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) grilled three top actresses Deepika Padukone, Shraddha Kapoor, Sara Ali Khan and Deepika’s manager Karishma Kapoor while it arrested Kshitij Ravi Prasad, a former executive of Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions, in connection with the Sushant Singh Rajput’s death-related drug case.
The day unfolded as Deepika took the media Paparazzi by surprise as she walked quietly without any security into Evelyn House, the guesthouse of the Mumbai Port Trust near the Taj Mahal Palace which has been converted into the makeshift NCB office, at 9.48 am on Saturday.
She confronted with her manager Karishma Prakash during questioning. She was questioned for nearly six hours.
Shraddha Kapoor reached the NCB office around 12 pm and left after six hours, while Sara Ali Khan reached around 1 pm and left around 5.30 pm.
Karishma, who appeared before the NCB for the second consecutive day and whose arrival at the investigating agency’s office went unnoticed, was grilled for nearly eight-long hours.
Talking to media persons after the film personalities’ day-long questioning, NCB’s Deputy Director General Mutha Ashok Jain said: “We have not issued fresh summons to anyone else today. Over the next couple of days, our Special Investigation Team and the Mumbai zonal office will review the progress of the two cases – CR no 15/20 and CR no 16/20 and plan for the future”.
“We have questioned Deepika Padukone, Karishma Prakash, Sara Ali Khan and Shraddha Kapoor,” Jain said.
Jain clarified that while Deepika was questioned in connection with the expanded Bollywood-drug nexus case involving the use of drugs by the film personalities, Sara and Shraddha were grilled in connection with the both the Sushant death-related case and expanded Bollywood-drug nexus case.
Jain confirmed that Kishtij, a former associate of film maker Karan Johar, had been arrested “We have questioned and formally placed him under arrest. He will be produced before court tomorrow,” Jain.
Jain, however, steadfastly declined to spell out as to what transpired at the questioning of three actresses and Karishma.
Asked if the NCB would question filmmaker Karqan Johar in the wake of the arrest of his former associate Kishtij, Jain said: “We cannot reply in ifs and buts.”
In a related development, the Mumbai police warned the media vehicles against chasing the vehicles of celebs who are being summoned for the drugs probe by the NCB.
“Today we have observed a lot of media vehicles chasing people who were called for the inquiry. The vehicles will be seized because they are endangering their lives as well as lives of whoever was called & common people,” Mumbai’s Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone-1) Sangram Singh Nishandar said.