Agencies
Mumbai, November 22:
A court in Mumbai sent comedian Bharti Singh and her husband Harsh Limbachiyaa to judicial custody till December 4 in connection with the seizure of ganja from their residence.
The couple was arrested by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB). While Bharti was arrested on Saturday, her husband was placed under arrest on Sunday after being questioned for 12 hours.
They were arrested after seizure of ganja (cannabis) from her house in suburban Andheri by NCB sleuths. Both Singh and her husband are accused of consuming ganja, an NCB official said.
They have been booked under the provisions of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.
Acting on a tip-off, the NCB had on Saturday conducted search at Singh’s office and residence as part of its probe into the alleged drug use in the entertainment industry, and seized 86.5 gm of cannabis during the search.
“Both Ms Bharti Singh and her husband Harsh Limbachiya accepted consumption of ganja,” a statement from the NCB said.
The quantity allegedly seized from Singh’s possession is considered as “small quantity” under the NDPS Act, as against “commercial quantity”, an NCB official said.
Up to 1,000 gm of ganja is considered small quantity, which attracts jail term up to six months and/or fine of Rs 10,000. Possession of commercial quantity – 20 kg or more – can attract up to 20 years in jail. For the quantity in between, the punishment can be as much as 10 years in jail.
Bharti Singh has appeared in a number of comedy and reality shows on TV and also hosted a few such shows.
The NCB has been probing the alleged drug use in Bollywood after the death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput in June this year on the basis of WhatsApp chats involving drugs.
The central agency earlier arrested Rajput’s girlfriend, actress Rhea Chakraborty, her brother Showik, some employees of the late film star and a few others under various sections of the NDPS Act.
Rhea Chakraborty and some other accused are currently out on bail.
