Union minister Ramdas Athawale has termed the allegations levelled by Maharashtra minister Nawab Malik against Narcotics Control Bureau’s zonal Director Sameer Wankhede as "baseless" and "mischievous", and defended the officer saying he has not done anything wrong.
Athawale accused Malik of trying to give a religious and casteist colour while targeting Wankhede.
“Samir Wankhede is a Dalit from Mahar community of Maharashtra and Nawab Malik is targeting Dalit officer Wankhede as he has booked the son-in-law of the minister in drug peddling case. Nawab Malik is vindictive as the son-in-law was in jail for eight months,” Athawale said here on Wednesday.
He said the Maharashtra government should ensure that Wankhede was not harmed and that there was no threat to his life.
Malik, a leader of the ruling Nationalist Congress Party, has been repeatedly targeting the NCB and Wankhede, who had supervised the raid on a cruise liner off the Mumbai coast earlier this month that led to the alleged recovery of drugs and the arrest of Aryan Khan, son of actor Shah Rukh Khan.
A few days back, Malik had dubbed Wankhede as "bogus" and asserted that once "proof" against him was out, he would not remain in government service even for one day. He had also said that the officer would lose his job in one year and eventually land in jail.
Wankhede has, however, refuted the allegations.
Athawale said Aryan Khan, instead of being sent to jail, should have been sent to the de-addiction centre for possession and consumption of drugs.
“If a person consuming alcohol or who is alcoholic is sent to a de-addiction centre instead of jail, the person consuming drugs should also be sent to a de-addiction centre,” he said.
Athawale, who was in Lucknow on Wednesday in connection with the organisational activities of his Republican Party of India (RPI), said the Bahujan Kalyan Yatra currently underway in UP, would conclude here on December 18. He said the RPI would organise a big rally here on December 18 in which Bharatiya Janata Party president JP Nadda and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath were likely to participate.
