Citing Aryan Khan’s clean chit, model seeks discharge from cruise drugs raid case

Dhamecha has said in her plea that according to the NCB’s document part of the charge sheet, one transparent packet containing black-coloured semi-solid substance was found on the corner desk of a room on the cruise she was in with two others on October 2, 2021. The substance, weighing 5 gram, was claimed to be charas.

Dhamecha, in her plea filed through lawyer Ali Kaashif Khan, said that there was no evidence to show that the packet belonged to her and not the other two present in the room of the cruise. She further said that the other two were not named accused or arrested by the NCB. She has said that the packet was not found on her or in any of her belongings and, therefore, she cannot be made responsible for it. Her plea also states that she had no connection with any of the other accused or alleged transactions between them.

“That the present applicant (Dhamecha) is in no way connected or related to any of the other Accused in the present matter and that the Applicant, has been deliberately and selectively chosen to be prosecuted in this matter given the profession of the Applicant as a model, and due to her profession she is connected with Bollywood Industry,” the plea states.

It adds that while the NCB has relied on WhatsApp chats to invoke the NDPS Act against Dhamecha, chats cannot be the sole evidence to book a person under the Act. It also said that the chats cited by the NCB could not be considered incriminating. The plea said that the NCB had included chats of Aryan Khan in its chargesheet, too, but he was not named as an accused by the NCB citing that there was a lack of sufficient evidence against him and five others.

Special public prosecutor Amit Munde said that the court has directed the NCB to file a reply to the plea.