Deepika Padukone was questioned for six hours on Saturday by the BCN.
New Delhi:
The cellphones of actors Deepika Padukone, Sara Ali Khan and Rakul Preet Singh are among those seized by the Narcotics Control Bureau in its investigation into allegations of drug abuse in Bollywood sparked by the star’s death Sushant Singh Rajput movie theater.
Ms Padukone, one of the biggest names in the Hindi film industry, was questioned for six hours on Saturday by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in Mumbai. She was summoned, along with actors Shraddha Kapoor and Sara Ali Khan.
BCN also seized the phones of talent manager Jaya Saha and fashion designer Simone Khambatta and sent them for forensic examination in the case which was based on recovered chat messages and which did not lead to the contraband discovery so far.
Ms Padukone was interviewed at the Evelyn Guest House at Colaba in Mumbai, where the Narcotics Control Bureau’s special investigation team has set up a base. Ms Kapoor and Ms Khan were also interviewed separately at the BCN’s Ballard Estate office.
The investigation into Bollywood’s drug links began with the questioning of actor Rhea Chakraborty, three months after Sushant Singh Rajput was found dead at her Mumbai home on June 14. and social media campaigns.
Sources from the Bureau of Narcotics Control, whose mandate is to tackle the biggest drug cartels and not individual consumers, said the agency is summoning Bollywood A-listers to understand the supply network via suspected consumers.
The actors have not been named as accused in any drug investigation cases and are only being questioned, agency sources said.
During his questioning before his arrest on September 9, Rhea Chakraborty reportedly named stars, including Sara Ali Khan and Rakul Preet Singh, in connection with drug use. His lawyer rejected this request.
Sara Ali Khan was also the co-star of Sushant Singh Rajput in the movie “Kedarnath”; Sushant Rajput developed the drug habit during the filming of the film, according to Rhea Chakraborty’s bail application before the Bombay High Court.
The names of Deepika Padukone and Shraddha Kapoor were found in WhatsApp chats on the phone of Jaya Saha, the talent manager of Sushant Singh Rajput and a top executive at talent firm Kwan. Jaya Saha was also questioned by the drug investigation agency.
Sushant Singh’s family through their lawyer Vikas Singh had expressed their displeasure with the direction of the probe calling “the NCB probe also going in the same direction as the Mumbai police probe … calling large names in questioning just for attention. “
