Ajaz Khan was in touch with drug peddler Shadab Batata for over 3 years: NCB sources

Actor Ajaz Khan outside Killa court on Wednesday. Pic/Suresh Karkera

Just a day after detaining actor Ajaz Khan, the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) arrested him on Wednesday. Sources in the agency said that Ajaz was in contact with drug peddler Shadab Shaikh alias Shadab Batata for the past three years and the actor had even bought some drugs from him.

Last week, the agency had arrested Shadab with drugs worth Rs 2 crore. Ajaz's name came up during Shadab's interrogation. Sources said that he would supply drugs to Bollywood parties as well.

Sources in the NCB said that Ajaz was in contact with Shadab over the past couple of years and had bought drugs from him several times. The agency presented the actor before the court and said that they had recovered some WhatsApp chats and a voice note shared between Ajaz and Shadab, which suggest that they were involved in drug dealing.

An NCB officer told mid-day, "In this case we have received digital evidence on the basis of which we arrested Ajaz. We will question him. Shadab told us that Ajaz buys drugs regularly from him but we need to check whether he sells or consumes those."

NCB zonal director Sameer Wankhede said, "Shadab was arrested last week and Ajaz was in contact with him. We suspect Ajaz may have deleted the WhatsApp chats between Shadab and him. We will send Ajaz's mobile phone to the forensic lab."

Ajaz's advocate Ayaz Khan said, "The voice note that the NCB has received is a year old and no drugs have been recovered from Ajaz's house. The medicines which have been found in his house belong to his wife."