SSR case: CBI should furnish results, says Rhea's lawyer
Months after Bollywood's rising star Sushant Singh Rajput died by alleged suicide in June, the lawyer of Rhea Chakraborty, the actor who faced a flurry of accusations, has asked the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to release its findings. Satish Maneshinde welcomed the statements of Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh, who also demanded answers from the top investigating agency. Here are more details.
To recall, the SSR death case had donned political colors after the state government was accused of laxity. And now that months have passed since CBI took over, the ruling Maharashtra government is using the same tactics to corner the agency, as evident from Deshmukh's remarks. On Sunday, he said the people of Maharashtra and the country were "eagerly waiting for the CBI's report."
"Five to six months have passed since the case was handed over to the CBI. Hence, the agency should make public its report as soon as possible to clear whether it was suicide or murder, (sic)" the minister added.
Subsequently, Deshmukh found support in Maneshinde, who also said a closure in this case was long overdue. The lawyer remarked, "A hue and cry was made when the Mumbai Police took about two months into the investigations and the report remained to be made public. An FIR was filed in Patna making false allegations against Rhea Chakraborty and her family in July 2020."
In the statement, Maneshinde underlined that Mumbai Police, Enforcement Directorate (ED), Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), CBI, and Patna Police launched probes against Rhea. "She was arrested in a bogus case with no evidence by NCB. She was harassed by various agencies and remained in custody for almost a month till the Bombay High Court released her on bail," he added.
"I have always said that the truth will remain the same whoever investigates the case. Whatever may be the circumstances, the CBI should come out with its findings after four months of investigations by the premier investigating agency of the country," the lawyer added.
As known by now, Chakraborty, who was in a relationship with Rajput, was hounded by the mainstream media for weeks after she was named as an accused. The family of the Patna-born deceased had claimed Chakraborty cut him off from them and siphoned funds. She was also arrested by the NCB on charges of procuring drugs but was released on bail in October.
While the CBI is yet to reveal its findings in the controversial case, NCB managed to break into Bollywood's dark side. The agency found incriminating evidence of drug abuse against several known stars and called them for questioning in the last few months. Among those who have been grilled so far are Deepika Padukone, Shraddha Kapoor, Rakul Preet, and Sara Ali Khan.
