Wankhede father's case is to hide NCB officer's illicit activities: Nawab Malik to HC

Mumbai: Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Nawab Malik told the Bombay High Court on Tuesday that Dnyandev Wankhede's defamation suit against him aimed to veil the illegal activities of Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) zonal director Sameer Wankhede.

Malik added that the case also aimed to curtail his freedom of expression, and thus it needed to be dismissed, Hindustan Times reported. He filed an affidavit in the HC in response to Dnyandev Wankhede's defamation suit.

Dnyandev had filed the defamation case, seeking Rs 1.25 crore as damages and a restraining order for NCP leader from making any false statements against the Wankhede family that could harm their reputation.

Malik stated in his affidavit that none of the statements he made was incorrect, and the evidence he produced has helped the government to take corrective steps against Sameer Wankhede. He said that Dnyandev distorted facts to get a favourable order.

Last month, Malik levelled a series of allegations against Sameer Wankhede. Wankhede had arrested Malik's son-in-law in January and Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan's son, Aryan Khan. Malik had claimed that both arrests were on false charges. He accused Wankhede and others of kidnapping Aryan Khan and extorsion. He also alleged that Wankheded forged a caste certificate to secure a position in the Indian Revenue Service.

The Wankhede family has refuted all the claims made by Malik.