Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan’s son Aryan Khan, born in 1997, was arrested today by the Narcotics Control Bureau for possession of banned drugs.
The arrest came after the NCB raided a luxury cruise ship sailing to Goa from Mumbai. The ship was allegedly hosting a rave party. The NCB is questioning Aryan Khan and verifying the details provided by Aryan. He is one among the eight arrested from the cruise ship.
On preliminary enquiry, Aryan reportedly told the officials of the NCB that he was invited on the cruise as a VIP guest, and that he had no knowledge of drugs being present on the ship. However, after being confronted with some incontrovertible evidence of his involvement in the event, he pleaded guilty.
The NCB officials have reportedly found drug chats on his phone. Aryan’s cell phone has been confiscated by the NCB and is being examined for references to drug dealers. The chats indicate that Aryan was regularly ordering drugs and consuming them. On further enquiry, Aryan confirmed that he was a willful participant in the drug party. If reports are to be believed, some drugs have been seized from Aryan’s lens pouch.
Aryan will have to undergo a medical test for forensic confirmation. The medical tests gain significance as the articles under which the arrested individual will be charged will depend on the results of the medical tests. They will also have to undergo Covid testing. They have been taken to J. J. Hospital where the tests will be undertaken.
Following this development, Shah Rukh Khan has cancelled his shooting schedule in Spain with actress Deepika Padukone for his upcoming film “Pathan” and is monitoring the developments in the case. He has not made any statements till now. Famous lawyer Satish Manshinde has been hired as a counsel for Aryan.
The whole episode sounds like déjà vu. Just a year back, the entire Bollywood was rocked by the suicide of Sushant Singh Rajput and it was reported that drugs were being consumed by him too. Upon investigation, the murky world of drug dealers and Bollywood actors came out in the open. So many Bollywood actors were reported to be taking drugs on a regular basis that it tarnished the image of the entire film industry. The nation started debating whether these stars are good role models for our youth, who in a fit of fan madness, follow in the footsteps of their cherished actors.
This promptness of action by the NCB is in sharp contrast to the complacency and indolence it exhibited when around 3000 kg of heroin was confiscated from Mundra Port in Gujarat. In fact, the drugs were seized by the officials of DRI (department of revenue intelligence) and not NCB. In spite of such a large haul from the port, the owners of the port, the Adani group, have not been summoned for enquiry.
This selective efficiency is attributed to the fact that the Adani group is very close to the ruling dispensation in Gujarat as well as in the center. The Adani group is one of the chief financers of BJP for its elections. So, the Congress Party, the main opposition party in the country, is accusing the government of collusion with the Adani group in killing the investigation whereas vulnerable actors of Bollywood are easy fodder for them.
Given the fact that the entire administration is under their control and significant portions of the judiciary have also been compromised in the past, it would be no surprise if Aryan Khan becomes the scapegoat to save the billionaire friends of the ruling dispensation. There is an eerie similarity to the events last year when a similar drug seizure from Bollywood actors was used as a smokescreen to deflect attention from the monumental mismanagement of the government in handling the Covid pandemic.
Aryan is a 23-year-old youth with a great future before him. He should not become a victim of a pernicious mindset which aims to demonize anybody with the surname “Khan.” We are all keeping our fingers crossed.
