Mumbai: The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) has suspended two of its investigating officers. The suspension order of the two officers was issued after they failed to appear before a court here. The court was hearing the bail pleas of comedian Bharti Singh and her husband Harsh Limbachiya in a drugs case, an NCB official said on Thursday.
The two officers were conducting a probe into the drugs case in which Bharti and Harsh were arrested last month. They were later granted bail by a Mumbai court November 23.
The two NCB officers and a public prosecutor failed to appear during the scheduled bail hearing of Bharti and her husband. They had also stayed away during hearing on the anticipatory bail application of actress Deepika Padukone’s manager Karishma Prakash, the official said.
The role of the investigating officers has been found to be ‘suspicious’ in both the cases. An internal inquiry has been ordered and it is being conducted by the NCB’s Mumbai zonal unit, the official informed. Since the inquiry is on, the two NCB officers have been placed under suspension, he informed. “The role of the public prosecutor is also under scanner,” the official said.
The NCB has moved an application before a court here to challenge the bail granted to Bharti and Harsh. Bharti was arrested November 21 by the NCB and her husband was taken into custody the next day. This happened after the probe agency recovered 86.5 gm ganja during search at the couple’s residence and office here.
Earlier, the NCB conducted searches October 27 at the residence of Karishma Prakash. It recovered 1.8 gram hashish from there, during its probe into the alleged nexus between drug peddlers and Bollywood celebrities which came to light after actor Sushant Singh Rajput’s death.
Prakash was summoned by the NCB probe team various times. She later moved court seeking anticipatory bail, sources said.