The Bombay High Court on Thursday granted bail to Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan's son Aryan Khan and co-accused Arbaaz Merchant and Munmun Dhamecha in a drugs cruise bust case. A single-judge bench of Justice Nitin W Sambre allowed their pleas by special NDPS court, against rejection of their bail and a detailed order on this judgement is expected to be out tomorrow.

Aryan and the two others are expected to be out either tomorrow or on Saturday. 23-year-old son of Shah Rukh Khan has been in custody since October 3, 2021. He was detained by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) after raids on a cruise ship party and was sent to Mumbai's Arthur Road jail on October 8, 2021.

Aryan Khan's arrest and denial of bail had sparked a debate over whether it was justified, given there was no evidence of consumption or recovery of drugs in his case. The NCB maintained that Aryan's WhatsApp chats revealed his involvement in illicit drug dealings.

Aryan's bail had been heard and denied twice earlier and this judgment comes at a time when the NCB's chief Sameer Wankhede faces departmental vigilance probe over allegations of extortion and corruption, in this same case.