Chaturvedi after his arrest on Tuesday. (PTI)

Mumbai, Aug. 3: Provogue Lounge co-owner Salil Chaturvedi was today remanded in police custody till August 17 in connection with a drug racket but the court admitted a complaint of foul play filed by him.

His wife Anisha alleged police had planted three vials of cocaine in a washroom of their Andheri home to frame Chaturvedi.

Anisha claimed a police party had smuggled in the vials during a search operation in their Lokhandwala Complex house around 4.30 pm yesterday after formally arresting Chaturvedi a little after noon.

Chaturvedi has been remanded in police custody till August 17. Anisha was home with her sister-in-law when the police landed up.

“A police team of about 12 people led by an inspector entered our apartment, and searched the house. They entered a toilet reserved for house guests for the first time, and did not find anything. Then a policeman entered the toilet again alone and produced three packets containing a powder,” a shaken Anisha said today.

Claiming the operation was mounted to plant evidence and show a drug seizure from their house, she added: “The toilet is used by our guests. The family doesn’t use it at all.”

Chaturvedi’s lawyer Amit Desai repeated the allegation before additional chief metropolitan magistrate V.V. Kamble at the Andheri court. He claimed the panchnama listing the seizures was fabricated.

He alleged his client had been detained for 24 hours without arrest and the police had violated his constitutional rights. He demanded the violations should be noted and a CID probe ordered.

The court then summoned senior inspector M.B. Katade of Santa Cruz airport, who denied the allegations. He said the police had followed proper procedure while making the arrest and conducting the search operation.

The prosecution argued Chaturvedi should be remanded in custody as his interrogation would throw light on drug abuse in celebrity circles. The Provogue Lounge is frequented by several Bollywood hotshots.

Police sources alleged Chaturvedi was aware of cocaine sale at the lounge and had been in touch with three Tanzanian suppliers arrested last month with one kg of cocaine.

Chaturvedi’s cellphone records are being probed. He is alleged to have bribed policemen to subvert investigations after a Provogue employee, Allwyn Sequeira, was detained in January at Mumbai airport with a parcel he was taking to Chennai.

His brother Nikhil, a partner in the apparel business, said: “Our business will not be affected by the arrest. Salil is one of the six directors of Provogue Lounge and handled the sales and marketing functions. All our outlets continue to be open.”

The brothers started the apparel business as Acme Clothing Pvt Ltd in November 1997. They launched the Provogue brand in March 1998 and have developed it into a leading one in seven years. They also unveiled the concept of a fashion store which converts into a lounge bar at night.

On June 10, Provogue India Ltd launched its IPO.