NCB trying to frame Ranbir Rampal Morea Kshitij Ravi Prasad

    (Eds: Updating with Prasad's statement)
    Mumbai, Oct 3 (PTI) Kshitij Ravi Prasad, the former
Dharmatic Entertainment executive producer arrested by the
Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in a Bollywood-drugs case, has
told a special court here that he has been "coerced into
falsely implicating" actors Ranbir Kapoor, Dino Morea and
Arjun Rampal by the agency officials.
    The NCB has dismissed these allegations as "false and
baseless".
    Interestingly, Prasad's lawyer Satish Maneshinde had
earlier told the court that the accused was being harassed and
blackmailed to make a statement against filmmaker Karan Johar
by NCB officials.
    The special Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances
(NDPS) Act court on Saturday remanded Prasad to judicial
custody till October 6.
    In his latest statement before the court, the accused
said, "Subsequent to my earlier statement, I have been
repeatedly harassed and coerced into falsely implicating
Ranbir Kapoor, Dino Morea and Arjun Rampal in the present
proceedings.
    "Despite me repeatedly stating that I don't said
persons...and have no knowledge of allegations against them
(sic)," Prasad stated.
    He stated since he refused to writesuch false
(statement mentioning Kapoor, Morea and Rampal) in his own
handwriting, "the complainant (NCB) has been preparing various
false statements as per their wishes and trying to coerce me
into signing them".
    Prasad further stated he was being harassed "mentally,
emotionally, and psychologically by the probe agency (sic)".
    Special public prosecutor Atul Sarpande told the court
that Prasad's allegations were completely baseless and false.
"Neither had we taken these names nor the accused (Prasad)
ever mentioned them (during his questioning). We have shown
his statement to the court," he said.
    According to the NCB, Prasad had procured drugs from
another accused Karmjeet and his associates.
    The agency had earlier arrested actor and late
Rajput's girlfriend Rhea Chakraborty, her brother Showik and
others in connection with the Bollywood-drugs probe.
    The CBI is separately investigating Rajput's death
case, in which Chakrabortys were booked by Bihar police under
the charge of abetment to suicide. PTI AVI
NSK NSK

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)