NCB sends phones of Deepika, Rhea and others for forensic testing in drug scandal

In a fresh update in the Bollywood drug nexus probe, the phones of 15 celebrities involved in the investigation being conducted by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) are being analysed. A report in Times of India suggests that the NCB team has now sent around 15 smartphones to Gandhinagar to seek help in extracting the data from the devices. These phones include the ones ‘voluntary surrendered’ by actors Deepika Padukone, Sara Ali Khan, and Shraddha Kapoor among others. The Directorate of Forensic Sciences in Gandhinagar received 15 smartphones from the NCB recently. The daily quoted a senior official from the DFS confirming the news and mentioning that the agency has sought help in establishing a few facts that emerged during the questioning of the people who surrendered their phones.

The agency has sought all the data on the devices – which would include contact lists, messages, social media conversations, and media files. It is possible that the data might help the investigators in establishing a few facts or getting new details related to the interplay of the accused in the case,” said the official without confirming the names of the owners of the smartphones. The other people apart from the actors who surrendered their phones to the NCB include the names of Deepika’s manager Karishma Prakash, designer Simone Khambatta, and Sushant’s talent manager Jaya Saha along with Rhea Chakraborty. For the unversed, both Jaya and Karishma were also interrogated by the central agency in connection with the Bollywood drug nexus. While Rhea Chakraborty has been granted bail, her brother Showik's plea was rejected by the court. On the other hand, the NCB also arrested Kshitij Prasad a few weeks back who was earlier associated with Karan Johar's Dharma Productions.