New Delhi: The Supreme Court Wednesday ordered a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the death of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput, who allegedly died by suicide at his Mumbai residence on 14 June.
A single-judge bench of Justice Hrishikesh Roy invoked Article 142 of the Constitution, which allows the SC to exercise its jurisdiction, to order the probe.
The judge also upheld Bihar Police’s jurisdiction to register a criminal case in connection with the suicide, and transfer of the probe to the central agency. The Bihar Police had registered the FIR at the behest of Rajput’s father last month.
The court rejected the plea by Rajput’s girlfriend Rhea Chakraborty, who is a co-accused in the Bihar FIR, to transfer the case to Mumbai since the cause of action to investigate a matter arose there.
The Maharashtra government’s claim that only Mumbai Police has the mandate to probe the case was also turned down. The court said the state never chose to challenge the probe, and it was Chakraborty who sought a transfer of the case.
The court had reserved its verdict on the transfer petition on 11 August.
Good Journalism matters,
more so in a crisis
Coronavirus, economy, tension with China are events unrivalled in recent times.
They demand clear, fair & questioning reporting, writing & pictures.
ThePrint consistently brings you the stories that matter, from where they happen.
We can sustain this only if you pay for what you read & watch.
Transfer documents
Justice Roy directed the Mumbai Police to transfer all papers related to the case to the CBI. The police had begun inquest proceedings into the alleged suicide and also recorded some statements. However, it did not register any FIR.
The court also gave liberty to the CBI to register a fresh case, if required.
In her petition, Chakraborty had claimed that Bihar had no jurisdiction in the case, and that the actor’s death was being used for political gains ahead of assembly elections in the state.
She received support from Maharashtra, which argued in favour of investigation by the Mumbai Police. It was highlighted that the cause of action took place in Mumbai.
The Bihar government and the actor’s father opposed Chakraborty’s petition. They argued the investigation carried out by the Mumbai Police was without the registration of an FIR and expressed their apprehension over its correctness.
The central government, which was allowed to intervene in the matter, had favoured a CBI probe.
Subscribe to our channels on YouTube & Telegram
News media is in a crisis & only you can fix it
You are reading this because you value good, intelligent and objective journalism. We thank you for your time and your trust.
You also know that the news media is facing an unprecedented crisis. It is likely that you are also hearing of the brutal layoffs and pay-cuts hitting the industry. There are many reasons why the media’s economics is broken. But a big one is that good people are not yet paying enough for good journalism.
We have a newsroom filled with talented young reporters. We also have the country’s most robust editing and fact-checking team, finest news photographers and video professionals. We are building India’s most ambitious and energetic news platform. And we aren’t even three yet.
At ThePrint, we invest in quality journalists. We pay them fairly and on time even in this difficult period. As you may have noticed, we do not flinch from spending whatever it takes to make sure our reporters reach where the story is. Our stellar coronavirus coverage is a good example. You can check some of it here.
This comes with a sizable cost. For us to continue bringing quality journalism, we need readers like you to pay for it. Because the advertising market is broken too.
If you think we deserve your support, do join us in this endeavour to strengthen fair, free, courageous, and questioning journalism, please click on the link below. Your support will define our journalism, and ThePrint’s future. It will take just a few seconds of your time.