Mumbai:
Actor Arjun Rampal’s home in Mumbai is being searched by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), which is investigating drugs allegations linked to the film industry, sources said on Monday.
Yesterday, Bollywood producer Firoz Nadiadwala’s wife was arrested by the anti-drugs agency after some 10 grams of marijuana was allegedly found at their Mumbai home in raids.
NCB officer Sameer Wankhede told news agency PTI that Firoz Nadiadwala was summoned but did not appear.
The Nadiadwalas were searched following the arrest of an alleged drug peddler recently.
The bureau’s probe started earlier this year when, during investigations into actor Sushant Singh Rajput’s death in June, WhatsApp chats involving drugs were found on the phone of his girlfriend Rhea Chakraborty, also an actor.
Subsequently, Rhea Chakraborty, her brother Showik, two of Sushant Singh Rajput’s employees and a few others were arrested for allegedly organizing drugs for the 34-year-old actor who was found dead in his Mumbai apartment on June 14.
As the anti-drugs agency widened its probe, Bollywood A-listers like Deepika Padukone, Sara Ali Khan, Shraddha Kapoor and Rakul Preet Singh were questioned.
Rhea Chakraborty, 28, was released on bail last month.
The NCB, which usually goes after drug cartels and suppliers, said the actors’ questioning was a part of its attempt to unravel the network of supply to celebrities.
The allegations have split the film fraternity, with one section hitting out at the vilification of the industry. Many well-known actors and filmmakers have been trolled over the allegations.
“I’ll be a liar if I say that this problem does not exist in our industry. It exists, just like every industry. But every person in every profession is not involved in such problems. This is impossible,” actor Akshay Kumar had said in a short video released in October, addressing the allegations of widespread drug abuse in the film industry.