Mumbai: A special CBI court here on Friday acquitted Sooraj Pancholi in the abetment of actor Jiah Khan’s suicide a decade after she was found hanging in her Juhu apartment.
Special CBI court judge A S Sayyad said due to paucity of evidence, the court holds Sooraj Pancholi not guilty.
It is, however, not the only case where an actor’s former partner has been accused of abetment of suicide.
Some of the high profile cases that led to legal battles are:
Sushant Singh Rajput: The Bollywood star died on June 14, 2020, at his home in Bandra Mumbai. At the time of his death, Rajput was in a relationship with Rhea Chakraborty, also an actor.
His father, KK Singh, filed an FIR against Rhea and her family members accusing her of abetment of suicide and siphoning off money from the late actor’s account, among others.
After the CBI registered the FIR, a case was lodged by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) against Rhea to look into the money-laundering angle. The NCB also stepped in after WhatsApp chats revealed that the actor was given drugs. A 12,000-page chargesheet was filed by the NCB in drugs probe. The case is still under investigation.
Tunisha Sharma: The 20-year-old TV actor was found hanging on the sets of a TV serial near Valiv in Palghar on December 24, 2022.
Her co-star Sheezan Khan was arrested the next day for abetment of suicide on a complaint lodged by Tunisha’s mother.
A court in Vasai, Maharashtra gave bail to Sheezan in the case on March 5, 2023, and said there was no need to keep him in jail since the probe was complete and chargesheet filed.
Tunisha and Sheezan were in a relationship but had broken up two month’s prior to the former’s death.
Pratyusha Banerjee: The popular TV star of “Balika Vadhu” fame was found dead at the Mumbai apartment on April 1, 2016. Her parents alleged that she was murdered by her boyfriend, actor-producer Rahul Raj Singh, who later applied for anticipatory bail avoiding arrest in the case. It is reportedly still active in the court.
Vaishali Takkar: A noted TV actor Vaishali Takkar allegedly committed suicide at her house in Indore, Madhya Pradesh, on October 16, 2022. The 30-year-old actor left a note in which she accused her former partner Rahul Navlani and his wife for harassing her.
A case was registered against Navlani and his wife Disha under Indian Penal Code Section 306 (abetment of suicide). He was arrested days after Vaishali’s demise and was released three months later on bail.
Disha went absconding after the incident. However, a court granted anticipatory bail to Disha in November last year. The case is ongoing.
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