Thane collector Rajesh Narvekar has issued an order cancelling the licence of a bar in Vashi owned by former Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) director Sameer Wankhede, citing he had obtained it in 1997 when he was underaged to do so.
“We had a hearing in January and issued the order on February 2, 2022, cancelling Wankhede’s licence as he was underaged (to obtain the licence when he did so)’’
As per the order, Section 54 of the Maharashtra Prohibition Act has been invoked for the cancellation of the licence.
NCP minister Nawab Malik first brought up the issue in November and the Thane unit of the state excise then issued a showcause notice to Wankhede about the licence of the Navi Mumbai bar.
An initial investigation by the local excise revealed that on the day Wankhede was granted a licence for a bar and restaurant on October 27, 1997, he was only 17, way below the stipulated age of 21.
Based on the findings, the excise department sent a letter to the Thane collector and Thane excise superintendent to take action.
Nawab Malik has been continuously attacking Sameer Wankhede since the cruise drug bust case, in which many were arrested, including Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan’s son Aryan. Wankhede had earlier arrested Malik’s son-in-law also in a narcotics case.
