WTF is happening with Deepika Padukone
The TLDR: The biggest story on television is the investigation of the so-called ‘drug nexus’ in Bollywood. And the coverage looks something like this:
Yup, that’s Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh being chased in their car after they landed in Mumbai to answer the summons issued by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB). Given the sad state of news coverage, we decided instead to focus on the bigger questions that have implications for all citizens. What is the actual evidence for this latest flurry of summons? How can authorities access WhatsApp messages? And can they be used in court?
Why was Padukone summoned?
A quick recap: Rhea Chakraborty was being investigated by the CBI and Enforcement Directorate (ED) ever since Rajput’s family filed an FIR claiming various things—including harassment and embezzlement. On August 26, the NCB registered a new case against Chakraborty, her brother Showik and four others—on the basis of WhatsApp chats shared by the ED. She has been arrested since and is in judicial custody. (We explained the case against Chakraborty here).
Two FIRs: According to the Indian Express, there were two FIRs (First Information Report) issued against Chakraborty et al. The first mentioned above—based entirely on WhatsApp chats—has not resulted in a single arrest.
But the NCB drew up a second FIR that aimed to “uproot the drug citadel in Mumbai, especially Bollywood”—and arrested 19 people, including Chakraborty. This one cited the seizure of a large amount of drugs from one of the accused who appears to be a drug dealer. What was seized: “590 gm of hashish, 0.64 gm of LSD sheets, 304 gm of marijuana, including imported marijuana joints and capsules, Rs 1,85,200 in cash and 5,000 Indonesian Rupiah.”
Point to note: No drugs were found either on Chakraborty or her brother.
Padukone’s summons: are linked to the first FIR—based on Chakraborty’s WhatsApp chats accessed by the ED and shared with the NCB. One of the people charged in FIR #1: Sushant Singh Rajput’s talent manager Jaya Saha. Apparently, Saha’s phone included WhatsApp messages from Padukone—which triggered the summons. To recap: Chakraborty’s WhatsApp —> Saha’s WhatsApp —> Deepika Padukone.
Point to note: The other celebs—Sara Ali Khan and Shraddha Kapoor—have been summoned with regard to FIR #2. News reports claim that Chakraborty told the NCB “that she would party with Sara, Shraddha, Rakul and Sushant at the late actor's Lonavala farmhouse.” But her lawyer says that she did not name any names.
Another NCB official told Times of India that they got the lead from one of the drug dealers named in FIR #2:
“Anuj Keshwani, a key supplier, was in contact with Shraddha and Sara and claimed to have supplied weed to them. We want to know if they procured it for themselves or someone else.”
What are these WhatsApp messages?
These were accessed from Jaya Saha’s phone. Screenshots have been leaked to the media, and aired on various TV channels. They appear to be taken from a group chat whose members apparently included Padukone (identified on screen only as D) and her business manager Karishma Prakash—and date back to October 2017. The basic gist: D asks Karishma to score some hash. (available on NDTV).
How did NCB get them?
They appear to have cloned Saha’s phone. As The News Minute notes, the Information Technology (IT) Act gives 10 central investigation agencies sweeping powers to intercept, monitor or decrypt any information generated, transmitted, received or stored in any computer resource. Once a phone is cloned, authorities can access all backed up data stored on the device and on cloud—including deleted messages. (NDTV explains the exact process).
Can WhatsApp messages be admitted as evidence?
Yes, the law permits admitting ‘electronic records’ as evidence—as long as there is proof that they have not been tampered with. According to a Supreme Court lawyer interviewed by The Print:
“In the case of a WhatsApp chat, auto-archiving conversations through designated mail service providers or using the ‘export chat’ option to retrieve the chat as a separate document or an electronic record is just as good as primary evidence and admissible in court when accompanied with its meta data and a certificate under section 65B of the IEA.”
But what do these WhatsApp messages prove?
That’s an entirely different matter. One legal expert explains:
“The seizure of narcotics or psychotropic substance is the primary evidence... Whatsapp chats can be used only as corroborative or supplementary evidence if at all the court appreciates it. It is not primary evidence.’’
In other words: Show me the drugs! As we explained, actual drugs have been seized only in FIR #2—and only from certain drug dealers. There are no actual drugs involved in FIR #1—which is related to Padukone. Every lawyer interviewed by Times of India makes the same point. It’s one thing to issue a summons, but quite another to make a case for drug consumption:
“[I]n respect of a transaction which took place in 2017 it is going to be very difficult for NCB to prove their case. If placement of drugs, receipts of drugs and delivery by peddler to the star and consumption by the star does not come on record, they won’t be able to charge them for consumption.”
Another lawyer puts it more bluntly: “Some chats are from 2017. How are they going to connect the chats to the 59 grams of ganja seized from peddlers. Will they book anyone who bought drugs 10 years ago?’’
So why do this at all?
The cynical answer: courtesy Rajdeep Sardesai: “So @deepikapadukone
summoned on September 25 by @narcoticsbureau. Farmers all India protest on Sept 25. Samajh mein aaya? 🙏🏽"
The bigger picture: It’s not just Chakraborty or Padukone etc. As the Financial Express points out, law enforcement authorities disproportionately target users instead of dealers or distributors—especially in the case of cannabis. The data of drug-related arrests speaks volumes:
- In India 59% of those arrested in 2018 were charged with possession for personal use.
- In Mumbai, 97-98% of the cases in 2017 and 2018 involved “possession for personal consumption.”
- The value of drugs seized in Maharashtra in 2016: Rs 60.6 crore. Cannabis constituted only Rs 6.2 crore. But it accounted for a whopping 87% of the arrests and convictions.
- Most of those arrested for marijuana use are disproportionately poor and young (less than 40 years of age).
- And 91% of those charged are convicted.
The bottomline: The ugliest actors in this public lynching of women actors are not law enforcement officials—who are doing their duly sarkaar-assigned jobs as the weapons of mass distraction. That prize belongs to the gallery of cheerleaders. News channels flashing clips from Padukone’s ‘Dum Maaro Dum’ number from ‘Cocktail’. Kangana Ranaut blaming Padukone’s depression on drugs. All gleeful participants in the Great Indian Inquisition.
Reading list
- The News Minute and NDTV offered a detailed explanation of how the government accessed the WhatsApp messages.
- Times of India has the best reporting on the legal substance—or lack thereof—of the summons.
- The Print explains the legal basis for admitting WhatsApp records.
- This Twitter thread explains how to keep your WhatsApp data safe.
- News18 looks at the sexist shaming of women who ‘party’.
- India Today did a cover story on the debate over the legalisation of marijuana—and a report on drug use among street children.
- Financial Express reports on the shameful pattern of drug arrests.
- We did three separate and related explainers on: mental health when SSR died; the rise of the celebrity drug bust; the case against Chakraborty.