Rhea Chakraborty's bail plea was heard by the Bombay High Court today, September 24, after it was rescheduled from yesterday due to heavy rains in the city. The Bombay HC has deferred Rhea's bail till September 29 and another hearing will take place on the date. Till then, the actress is to remain in judicial custody in Byculla jail in Mumbai.
Rhea had applied for bail after her bail application was rejected by the sessions court. Rhea is currently in judicial custody after she was arrested by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) on September 8. Rhea will remain in judicial custody till October 6.
SUSHANT SINGH RAJPUT DEATH CASE: ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW
In the bail hearing, Satish Maneshinde said, "I am contending the very investigation by NCB," and called the NCB's investigation "illegal", to which Justice Sarang Kotwal, presiding over the case, asked, "where is this written in your petition." At this point, Maneshinde pointed at the 47th page of Rhea Chakraborty's bail petition.
In the reply filed before the lower court, the NCB lawyer said that it is investigating the Sushant Singh Rajput case. Maneshinde maintained that the Supreme Court has said in an order that all cases in Sushant Singh Rajput death, whether already registered or are to be registered in future, should be transferred to CBI. The CBI is empowered to investigate the case even under NDPS. So after registration of the case, the case should have been transferred to CBI.
Justice Kotwal, responding to the NCB lawyer, said, "It is not for this case but it has [a] wider question of law to deal with. So just come prepared" and adjourned the hearing.
Rhea's lawyer Satish Maneshinde had earlier today, confirmed the bail hearing and said, "The hearing in Rhea Chakraborty bail plea will be taken up today September 24 at SR no 50 by Justice Sarang Kotwal BHC."
It was earlier reported that Rhea's hearing will not take place today as the judges are not sitting. However, Satish Maneshinde later confirmed that the hearing will, in fact, take place today itself.
Rhea Chakraborty made some shocking revelations in her 47-page bail application to the Bombay High Court. In one place, she said that Sushant Singh Rajput "used her, her brother Showik [Chakraborty] and members of his household staff to facilitate his own drug habit while ensuring that he did not leave a paper trail of his own in the form of any electronic evidence whatsoever".
While in another, Rhea revealed that while she was being interrogated by the NCB, not a single female officer present, as mandated by the law. Rhea said that the NCB had summoned her for interrogation on September 6, 7 and 8, when she was "interrogated for a minimum of 8 hours at a stretch by multiple male officers". However, there was "not a single lady officer who interrogated" Rhea, as mandated by law.
Rhea, however, denied that she named Shraddha Kapoor or Sara Ali Khan during her interrogation by the NCB. It has been reported that it was through Rhea's statement that the NCB had arrived on Shraddha and Sara, however, Rhea, through her lawyer Satish Maneshinde, has denied naming them or any other Bollywood star.
Apart from Rhea and Showik, Sushant Singh Rajput's house manager, Samuel Miranda and cook, Dipesh Sawant, are also in judicial custody. As per the latest reports, the court has granted the NCB permission to go in and record Rhea's brother Showik Chakraborty and DIpesh Sawant's statement.
Sushant Singh Rajput was found hanging dead at his Bandra, Mumbai apartment on June 14. The actor's death case is being investigated by three agencies, the NCB is looking into a drug conspiracy angle, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is looking into whether it was a case of suicide or homicide, and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) is probing a money-laundering angle.
ALSO READ | Bollywood drug probe: The silence of the stars
ALSO WATCH | NCB probe into alleged drug link gets bigger