Aryan Khan, son of Hindi actor Shah Rukh Khan, was arrested by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) on Sunday at around 2 pm after being interrogated over a cruise ship rave party.
Post Khan’s arrest, while several celebrities came out in support of Shah Rukh Khan and his son on social media, other netizens took to Twitter to hail the NCB.
Celebrities like Hansal Mehta, Pooja Bhatt, and Suniel Shetty all expressed solidarity with Khan, while Suchitra Krishnamoorthi said the recent events ‘target Bollywood’. “For all those targeting Bollywood, remember all the NCB raids on film stars? Yes, nothing was found and nothing was proved. Bollywood gawking is a tamasha. It’s the price of fame” she wrote.
Speaking at an event, Shetty said, “I would like to say that wherever there is a raid, several people are caught. And we assume that this child must have consumed drugs or this child must have done it. But the proceedings are on, let’s give that child a breather.”
The actor added, “Whenever something happens in Bollywood, the media scrutinises everything and jumps to conclusions. Give the child an opportunity. Let the real reports come out. Baccha hai (He’s a kid). Taking care of him is our responsibility.”
Bhatt, in her tweet, said that she stands in solidarity with Shah Rukh Khan and wrote, “Not that you need it. But I do. This too, shall pass.”
Mehta asked people to let the law take its course and termed it a ‘painful situation’.
On the other hand, a portion of Twitter also felt that Khan would be given preferential treatment due to his father’s star status and be granted bail.
The NCB registered a case under several sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985, after officers seized 13 gm of cocaine, 21 gm of charas or hashish, 22 pills of MDMA (ecstasy), 5 gm mephedrone, and cash worth Rs 1.33 lakh at International Cruise Terminal, Green Gate Mumbai.
The agency raided a party aboard a cruise ship on Saturday night based on a tip-off. Aryan Khan was among the attendees.
Khan’s lawyer Satish Maneshinde, however, said in the court after his arrest that Khan was invited to the cruise party but no illegal substances were found in his possession.
Khan applied for bail on Monday, but his application was denied and he was remanded to custody till Thursday.
The NCB had asked for judicial custody of Khan and two others – his friend Arbaaz Merchant and fashion designer Munmun Dhamecha – till October 11 to interrogate them further and find the source of the drugs.
