Bengaluru: The prime suspects arrested in connection with an alleged drugs scandal in the Kannada film industry, Sandalwood, are giving police a hard time, Bengaluru Central Crime Branch (CCB) investigators have told ThePrint.
Those arrested in the case so far include actors Ragini Dwivedi, 30, and Sanjjanaa Galrani, 30, big-ticket party planner Viren Khanna, 34, and jeweller Vaibhav Jain, 34.
According to CCB sources, while Dwivedi tried to manipulate the urine sample she turned in for a dope test, Khanna refused to disclose the password to his phone. Galrani, meanwhile, created problems when staff tried to collect her blood sample at a hospital, demanding her lawyer’s presence, and Jain faked a Covid-19 diagnosis to stall his arrest, the sources said.
Reached for comment, the legal teams of Ragini, Sanjjanaa and Khanna denied all allegations. Ragini’s lawyer said she had no reason to tamper with her urine sample when she had also undergone a blood test. Khanna’s legal representative claimed he had turned in the passcode, and alleged he was “tortured for this” despite constitutional provisions that protect one against self-incrimination. Sanjjanaa’s lawyer said she was right to seek his presence, and expressed fears of a frame-up.
Jain’s legal representatives could not be reached.
The current investigation began after the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) busted an international drug trafficking racket through multi-city raids last month. During the raids, large amounts of drugs were allegedly recovered from upscale gated properties in Bengaluru that are believed to belong to high-profile personalities, largely from Sandalwood.
Eighteen people have been booked and 13 arrested in the case so far.
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Ragini Dwivedi
Ragini Dwivedi, a former Miss India runner-up and a well-known actor, is described by CCB sources as “one of the first big catches” in the alleged drug racket. Police claim they have enough evidence to connect her to the drug ring.
Ragini was arrested on 4 September. Nine days later, sources said, she was asked to undergo a dope test, as ordered by court, and taken to K.C. General Hospital in Bengaluru for collection of blood, urine and hair follicle samples.
However, when Ragini handed over her urine sample, police were quick to realise that she had diluted it with water to tamper with it, sources said. This made the sample unfit for testing.
CCB officials present at the scene subsequently forced her to give a fresh sample, ensuring this time that a woman police officer and a nurse were with her throughout, the sources added.
Ragini also allegedly created trouble on 16 September, when she was sent to judicial custody by court. After the court order, sources said, the actor refused to enter the police van, insisting that she wouldn’t do so unless her lawyer was present.
Sources said police personnel finally “pushed her into the van”, which was to take her to Bengaluru’s Central Jail, Parappana Agrahara. The actor was heard saying that she was being unfairly treated and it was her right to have a lawyer with her, the sources added.
Ragini’s lawyer Kalyan Krishna dismissed allegations that she tampered with the urine sample, saying “there are many reasons why a sample may have looked like it has been diluted with water”.
“My client may have consumed a lot of water, and thus the sample may have looked diluted. Also, logically, it did not make sense for her to tamper with the evidence as her blood tests, which she has no control over, would have given their results,” he added. “So, why manipulate the urine sample? Actually, my client agreed to give another sample, which is appreciable,” he added.
Viren Khanna
Viren Khanna, arrested on 5 September, is accused of hosting high-profile parties where drugs were peddled.
According to Bengaluru Police, searches at his house have yielded a police uniform, complete with shoes, belt and cap, but without the stars pinned into the shoulder, which denote rank. Khanna is also seen in the khaki uniform in a photo posted on his social media, and police say they are investigating what it was used for.
The items seized by police include Khanna’s phone. However, sources said, the party planner claimed to have forgotten the passcode when investigators asked for it. “He said he couldn’t remember the passcode or the combination,” said an officer close to the investigation.
Despite a court order asking Khanna to reveal his password, the officer added, Khanna continues to say he is unable to recall the code.
Khanna’s lawyer Hashmath Pasha admitted that a police uniform has been found in his house, but added, “We don’t know if he has used it or not.”
The lawyer denied allegations that his client withheld his phone passcode from police. “He gave them the passcode a number of times. Police kept closing the phone, forcing him each time to open it. My client has protection under Article 20, clause B, of the Constitution where he cannot be subject to ‘self-incrimination’,” he said. “He was even repeatedly tortured for this.”
Khanna’s arrest in the case is believed to have spawned a Twitter account called “JUSTICEFORVIRENKHANNA”, which has been active since 22 September.
The account seeks to update people on the proceedings and “to display a more balanced view on Virens contributions to society than is currently offered (sic)”.
Police sources said they are monitoring the account, which they believe could have been started by his family. “If there is any crucial information or evidence that surfaces on social media, we will analyse it,” said an investigating officer.
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Vaibhav Jain
Vaibhav Jain, a Bengaluru-based jewellery businessman, was arrested 12 September. Jain, police sources said, was named by a male contact of Ragini who has also been arrested in the case. Suspected of having supplied synthetic drugs, he is believed to have been associated with Khanna and Ragini.
When police landed at Jain’s residence to arrest him on 12 September, he sent word through his help that he had Covid-19 and had been advised home quarantine, sources said. Police did not believe his claim and got him tested, the sources added, saying the test came back negative. He was then arrested.
Jain, sources said, also lied to police as he sought to make a call on 18 September. He told police he needed to call up his wife to wish her on their anniversary, following which police gave him a phone, sources claimed.
The next day, sources said, when Jain’s wife arrived to give him a fresh set of clothes, the officers wished her. His wife, however, was stunned and told the officers that their wedding anniversary was on another date, sources added. Turns out, Jain had actually called up his model-girlfriend, a former Miss India finalist, to wish her on her birthday, the sources said.
Sanjjanaa Galrani
Sanjjanaa Galrani was arrested on 8 September for alleged links with drug peddlers. She is believed to have kicked up a racket when taken for a dope test to K.C. General Hospital.
Sanjjanaa, CCB personnel said, argued with them for hours, and refused to allow hospital personnel to take her blood samples. She was seen screaming that it was her fundamental right to have a lawyer by her side and say “no” to a test. Sanjjanaa’s “drama”, sources said, was captured on camera by police. They eventually managed to collect her blood and hair samples.
Her lawyer Srinivas Rao said she was right in seeking his presence at the hospital, accusing CCB sleuths of conducting the investigation in a haphazard way.
“The NDPS (National Drugs and Psychotropic Substances) Act is very stringent, and gives the accused a chance to prove whether he/she had or had not been a consumer or distributor of drugs,” he added.
“Look at the way my client was first arrested and taken for a dope test three days later. The first three days she was in police custody. It is police who served her food. What if they had mixed something in the food and then taken her for tests?” he said.
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