Delhi HC asks CAT to decide matter in IRS officer Wankhede case

The Delhi High Court on Monday refused to interfere with an order of the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) staying the disciplinary proceedings against IRS officer Sameer Wankhede in connection with the 2021 Cordelia cruise drugs case.

A bench of Justices Anil Kshetarpal and Amit Mahajan, while dealing with the petition by the Centre against the stay order, asked CAT to make “sincere efforts” to decide the main matter on January 14 or within the next 10 days.

Wankhede, a 2008-batch Indian Revenue Service (IRS) officer, made headlines for allegedly demanding Rs 25 crore from Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan’s family by threatening to implicate his son Aryan Khan in the Cordelia cruise drug bust case during his tenure in the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) Mumbai in 2021.

Before CAT, Wankhede had filed an original application challenging the disciplinary inquiry against him for allegedly seeking confidential information related to the probe from NCB’s legal department after he was relieved from the agency.

It was also alleged that he sought an “assurance” from the NCB’s legal officer to “steer the investigation” in the probe.

CAT stayed the inquiry on August 27, 2025.

“The tribunal will make sincere efforts for the disposal of the OA (Original Application) on January 14 or within the next ten days from 14 January.

The Tribunal will proceed to decide the OA uninfluenced by the interim order,” said the bench while disposing of the Centre’s petition.

During the hearing, the court observed that the inquiry was stayed in August but the authorities did not take any steps in the last five months.  “Today, when the matter is listed for final argument, tell us what has caused the prejudice to say the court (tribunal) will decide uninfluenced by the stay order,” it said.

The Centre’s counsel said CAT erred in staying the inquiry against the IRS officer on the basis of a Bombay High Court order, which protected Wankhede from CBI’s coercive action in a corruption case.

Wankhede’s counsel said the matter would come up for hearing on 14 January and it would be appropriate to request the CAT to finally decide his plea.