Sameer Wankhede, the former anti-drugs officer who was accused of attempting to extort Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan after arresting his son Aryan Khan in 2021, has submitted what he claims to be their chats as evidence in his defence. Wankhede, the former zonal director of the Narcotics Control Bureau in Mumbai, presented screenshots of alleged conversations to the Bombay High Court, where Shah Rukh Khan purportedly begged him to release Aryan Khan, expressing concern for his son’s well-being. The authenticity of these chats has not been independently verified by NDTV or Shah Rukh Khan’s legal team.
Aryan Khan was arrested on October 3, 2021, during a drug raid on a party held on a cruise ship. He was eventually released almost a month later. Wankhede now faces allegations from the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) of demanding a bribe of ₹25 crore from Shah Rukh Khan to avoid implicating Aryan Khan in the case.
The submitted chats allegedly showed Shah Rukh Khan sending desperate messages, pleading for his son’s release. In one message, the actor reportedly wrote, “I beg you, man, please don’t let him be in that jail. These holidays will come, and he will break as a human being. His spirit will be destroyed because of some vested people. You promised you will reform my child, not put him in a place where he may come out completely battered and broken. And it’s no fault of his.” The conversations often concluded with the signoff “Love srk.”
According to one of the screenshots, Shah Rukh Khan assured Wankhede that he would do everything in his power to convince someone to retract a statement, while pleading for his son’s release. The officer’s response, reportedly, was brief: “Sharukh, I know you as a fine human being. Let’s hope for the best. Take care of yourself.”
Some of the messages seemed to have been sent on October 4, the day after Aryan Khan’s arrest, and continued until the early hours of the morning.
In alleged messages sent around October 14, when Aryan Khan’s bail plea was being considered in court, Shah Rukh Khan appeared to beg Wankhede to “show some kindness.” However, the officer responded, “Dear Sharukh, I wish I could talk to you as a friend and explain the current situation and not as a zonal director. All the murk and unscrupulous elements are vitiating the entire atmosphere. I wanted to look towards the kids in a reformatory approach and provide an opportunity for the best living and national service. But unfortunately, my attempt is being maligned by some dirty persons with malafide and vested interests.”
Wankhede has been granted protection by the High Court from any coercive action in the extortion case, and he has requested the court to dismiss the FIR filed against him by the CBI. An NCB report has alleged that Wankhede made numerous trips abroad with his family and owned properties disproportionate to his income.