The Pune city police on Thursday morning arrested Kiran P Gosavi, in connection with a cheating case lodged in 2018.
Gosavi, whose photographs with Aryan Khan had gone viral on social media after the latter’s arrest, is an independent witness of the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in the Cordelia cruise ship drug bust case on October 2 involving Aryan Khan.
Maharashtra | Kiran Gosavi (NCB witness in the drugs-on-cruise matter) has been detained: Amitabh Gupta, Pune Police Commissioner
— ANI (@ANI) October 28, 2021
(File photo) pic.twitter.com/6AFxtn0Udq
As per reports, on May 29, 2018, one Chinmay Deshmukh, a resident of Kasba Peth of Pune had lodged a complaint against him at Faraskhana police station. The complainant alleged that Gosavi cheated Rs 3.09 lakh from him in the name of providing a job in Malaysia. Police had booked him under sections 419 and 420 of the Indian Penal Code and sections of the Information Technology Act. He has been facing four FIRs pending at different police stations in Maharashtra. Pune police had earlier arrested his assistant Sherbano Kureshi in the cheating case.
Commissioner of Pune City police Amitabh Gupta confirmed his arrest stating that the charge sheet, in this case, was filed in 2019. “If we get more complaints against him, we will register fresh offices against him,” he added.
But, the timing of his arrest has fuelled suspicion as attempts are being allegedly made to derail the probe by a powerful lobby of Bollywood and politicians from Maharashtra. However, referring to his arrest the Commissioner of Police said that there was no politics involved in that matter. The Pune police said that no agency so far has contacted to hand over Kiran to them. Pune police said that any agency seeking his custody can approach the court for the same.
The Pune police have stated that Gosavi had gone missing after 2019 and surfaced as an NCB witness in the cruise ship drug case. Interestingly, as per reports, Gosavi was incommunicado after his photos surfaced with Aryan Khan.
Gosavi travelled to Pune on Wednesday and told the media that he was going to appear before NCB in Mumbai to record his statement in connection with an inquiry against NCB Zonal Director Sameer Wankhede. But he was arrested before he could move to Mumbai.
The drug probe case has been under relentless political attacks, especially by NCP leader and minister Nawab Malik. Malik’s own son-in-law was arrested in an NCB drug case in January this year and remained in jail for over 8 months. It is being said that Malik’s repeated personal attacks against NCB officer Sameer Wankhede and attempt to derail the cruise ship drug bust case are indicative of a personal vendetta by the minister.
The NCB had earlier alleged that Pooja Dadlani, manager of Shah Rukh Khan had tried to influence witnesses. Prabhakar Sail was also among the witnesses of the NCB in this high-profile drug case. He had turned hostile and made extortion allegations against the NCB. He had claimed that NCB demanded Rs. 25 crores from Shah Rukh Khan to settle this case. He claimed that Rs. 8 crores out of the 25 crores were to be paid to Sameer Wankhede.
Gosavi says Prabhakar Sail is lying
Ahead of his arrest Gosavi made a video statement and said that Prabhakar Sail was lying. He said that whatever allegations he has made are false. “Who spoke with Sam D’Souza? And who took how much money? What are the offers Prabhakar Sail received in the last five days? This all will be clearly understood from his call and chat records,” he said.
Prabhakar Sail is lying. All I want to request is his CDR report must be released. My CDR report or chats can be released, Prabhakar Sail & his brother’s CDR reports, as well as chats, should be released, everything will be clear: Kiran Gosavi, NCB witness, before being detained pic.twitter.com/t3CDFe96Rp
— ANI (@ANI) October 28, 2021
He demanded the CDR reports, chat record and mobile conversation of Prabhakar Sail and his brother after October 2 must be checked and released. “Prabhakar must have deleted records but that can be recovered. Check my mobile chats too if I had asked Prabhakar to bring money from one place to another. I have a business of import and export and before (October 2), I might have asked Prabhakar,” Gosavi said.
Without naming Nawab Malik Gosavi alleged that a politician was behind all of this. He said that if Mumbai Police has taken up the case, police should also check which minister or politician is behind all of this.
