Mumbai: Actors Deepika Padukone, Sara Ali Khan, Rakul Preet Singh and Shraddha Kapoor, who were questioned by the Narcotics Control Bureau, have all denied substance abuse, reports S Ahmed Ali. They said they were referring to hand-rolled cigarettes in their WhatsApp chats, which mention the word “doob”. “They said they don’t even smoke cigarettes,” said an NCB official. They have also refuted any knowledge of Sushant Singh Rajput’s alleged drug habit. The NCB officer said technical analysis of their mobile phones that were voluntarily surrendered will clear all doubts.

Meanwhile, Kshitij Prasad, a former executive producer of Dharmatic Entertainment, owned by Karan Johar, told a magistrate’s court that he was “harassed” to make a statement that would implicate Johar. His lawyer Satish Maneshinde alleged NCB recorded his statement under duress and offered him a deal if he implicated Johar. NCB refuted the allegations.