Karan Johar has refuted all charges of drug consumption at his party.
Mumbai:
Drugs were not consumed at a party hosted at his house last year, filmmaker Karan Johar has told the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in response to a notice issued by the agency, news agency PTI reported on Friday quoting officials.
The anti-drugs agency had issued the notice to Mr Johar over a viral video of the party, attended by top Bollywood stars, where drugs were allegedly consumed, the official said.
“Johar was asked to give details of the party. Accordingly, the NCB on Friday received a reply from him to the notice In the reply, Johar maintained that no drug was consumed at the party,” he told PTI.
Zonal Director of Narcotics Control Bureau, Sameer Wankhede told NDTV, “We are examining the reply.” Karan Johar’s written reply to the notice was handed over to the NCB by his lawyer who visited the agency’s office in South Mumbai this morning.
Shiromani Akali Dal leader Manjinder Singh Sirsa had sent the video to the NCB and his complaint was marked to the agency’s Mumbai zonal unit, an official told PTI.
Mr Sirsa had claimed that he had registered a complaint about this video with the Mumbai police in August last year, but no probe was conducted.
After the video went viral, Mr Johar had issued a public statement in connection with that video, saying reports of drug consumption at his party were slanderous and malicious.
“These slanderous and malicious statements, news articles and news clippings have unnecessarily subjected me, my family, and my colleagues, and Dharma Productions, to hatred, contempt and ridicule,” he said.
“I would like to unequivocally once again state that I do not consume narcotics and I do not promote or encourage consumption of any such substance,” the director-producer added.
The central agency has been conducting an anti-drugs probe that began after the death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput in June this year.
Several people associated with the entertainment industry have been, or are being, investigated by the Narcotics Bureau, which claims a nexus between drug dealers and Bollywood.
Last week, agency sources said they had detained one of Mumbai’s “biggest” drugs suppliers and recovered a list of his clients many of whom are Bollywood celebrities.
Since the probe started the NCB has questioned several prominent people, including Bollywood stars Deepika Padukone, Sara Ali Khan, Rakulpreet Singh, Shraddha Kapoor and Arjun Rampal.
They have also arrested comedian Bharti Singh and her husband Haarsh Limbachiyaa over alleged possession and use of marijuana. Ms Singh and Mr Limbachiyaa were granted bail last week.
In September the agency also arrested Sushant Singh Rajput’s girlfriend actor Rhea Chakraborty and her brother, Showik Chakraborty, who were released on bail later.
