Jolt to Sameer Wankhede as Delhi HC questions maintainability of his defamation plea over Aryan Khan's The Ba***ds of Bollywood

Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav questioned Wankhede, a former Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) officer, how the defamation suit was maintainable in Delhi and whether the cause of the action originated in the city.

Advocate Sandeep Sethi, who was representing Wankhede, argued the web show was meant for across cities including Delhi and his client was defamed here, The Hindu reported.

Wankhede has demanded Rs. 2 crore in damages over the show which he claimed has "false, malicious and defamatory content" aimed to tarnish his image.

He has alleged the series has portrayed the anti-drug enforcement agencies in a negative light.

In a statement, the former NCB officer said as quoted by Hindustan Times, "Sameer Wankhede, IRS Officer, has filed a defamation suit before the Delhi High Court seeking reliefs in the nature of permanent and mandatory injunction, declaration, and damages against Red Chillies Entertainment Pvt Ltd, owned by actor Shah Rukh Khan and Gauri Khan, the OTT platform, Netflix and others, having been aggrieved by a false, malicious, and defamatory video produced by Red Chillies and broadcast by Netflix as part of their television series titled The Ba***ds of Bollywood."

"This series disseminates a misleading and negative portrayal of anti-drug enforcement agencies, thereby eroding public confidence in law enforcement institutions," the statement added.

In a scene from the series, an anti-drug enforcement agency officer with an uncanny resemblance to Wankhede comes to a Bollywood party to launch a crackdown on drugs.

The officer tries to arrest a man smoking a joint but when he learns the individual was not from Bollywood, he gets irritated.

The officer then diverts his attention to another person, a Bollywood member who was drinking, and arrests him.

The Ba***ds of Bollywood is the directorial debut of superstar Shah Rukh Khan's son Aryan Khan, who was arrested by the NCB following a raid on a party aboard a cruise ship (Cordelia Cruises) off the coast of Mumbai.

Wankhede was the zonal director of the NCB Mumbai at the time of Aryan's arrest.

Aryan, 27, was cleared by the NCB in 2022.