Sushant Rajput death: CBI submits closure reports in cases filed by his father, Rhea Chakraborty
New Delhi (PTI): The CBI has filed two separate closure reports related to the death of Sushant Singh Rajput, one in the abetment to suicide case filed by his father, and another by the actor's rumoured girlfriend Rhea Chakraborty against his sisters, officials said Saturday.
The CBI submitted its findings on Rajput's father K K Singh's complaint in a closure report before a special court in Patna, while the closure report in the second case was submitted before a special court in Mumbai.
The courts will now decide whether to accept the report or order further probe by the agency, the officials quoted above said.
Chakraborty’s advocate Satish Maneshinde hailed the closure report and thanked the CBI for "having thoroughly investigated every aspect of the case from all angles".
Rajput was found hanging from the ceiling of his apartment in suburban Bandra in Mumbai on June 14, 2020. He was 34. His postmortem conducted at Cooper Hospital had concluded that the actor died due to asphyxia.
The CBI investigated the two separate cases -- filed by KK Singh with Patna Police accusing Chakraborty of abetment to suicide and siphoning off Rs 15 crore from the actor's accounts; and the second filed by Chakraborty in Bandra accusing Rajput's sisters of giving medicines to him on the basis of bogus prescription issued by a Delhi doctor.
In the case filed before Bandra Police, which was later taken over by the CBI, Chakraborty had alleged that Rajput died five days after these medicines were wrongly prescribed to him.
Based on expert opinion, crime scene analysis, witness statements and forensic reports, the CBI concluded there was no material to support the allegations that anyone could have driven the actor to suicide, the officials said.
The agency finally decided to file its final reports bringing to rest five years of conspiracy theories surrounding the death of the bollywood star, they said.
In its reported medico-legal opinion to the CBI, forensic specialists at AIIMS had dismissed the claims of "poisoning and strangling" made in the case of Rajput's death.
The CBI had recorded the statements of Rhea Chakraborty and others in his close circle, and collected the actor's medical records.
Chakraborty’s advocate Satish Maneshinde hailed the closure report filed by the CBI. "We are grateful to the CBI for having thoroughly investigated every aspect of the case from all angles and closed the case," the advocate said in a statement.
Maneshinde said the amount of "false narrative in social media and electronic media was totally uncalled for".
"Due to the (Covid) pandemic, every one was glued to the television and social media in the absence of anything happening in the country. Innocent people were hounded and paraded before the media and investigative authorities," the statement said.
"Rhea Chakraborty had to undergo untold miseries and was behind bars for 27 days before being released on bail," he said.
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CM Siddaramaiah alleges ‘criminal conspiracy’ in Sringeri recount, vows legal action
Bengaluru (PTI): Alleging a “criminal conspiracy” by BJP candidate D N Jeevaraj in the Sringeri Assembly poll recounting, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said the outcome was manipulated after valid postal ballot votes in favour of Congress leader T D Raje Gowda were tampered with during the recounting process.
Following a Karnataka High Court order on an election petition filed by Jeevaraj, challenging Raje Gowda’s election, the reverification and recounting were conducted on Saturday.
After the reverification and recount of postal ballots for the Sringeri Assembly constituency, votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda were reduced by 255, the returning officer said.
A report on the matter has been submitted to the Election Commission of India for further action, the officer added.
Congress leader Raje Gowda had won the 2023 Assembly polls from Sringeri by 201 votes, defeating his nearest rival Jeevaraj.
Addressing a press conference in Bengaluru, Siddaramaiah said the High Court had directed the recounting of postal ballots and that irregularities were noticed during the exercise conducted on May 2.
“This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” Siddaramaiah said, alleging that valid votes cast in favour of Raje Gowda were altered after being accepted by counting agents of all parties, including Congress, BJP, and JD(S).
He claimed that during the recounting of postal ballots, 255 votes were initially accepted as valid by all agents but were later tampered with by subordinate officials.
“There is a second mark on the votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda. They had accepted these as valid votes. Subsequently, another mark was made by officials. This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” he said.
When asked who was behind the alleged conspiracy, the CM replied, “It was hatched by Jeevaraj and others. It is planned.”
Siddaramaiah further alleged that the returning officer acted improperly by declaring the result despite the presence of an Election Commission observer during the recounting.
“Immediately after the counting, the returning officer announced the result. He should not have done so; this is against the law,” he said.
He pointed out that Raje Gowda had originally won by 201 votes, but after the recounting, the BJP candidate was declared the winner by 52 votes.
“The BJP has committed a criminal act of conspiracy. This is not vote chori but vote dacoity,” he alleged.
The CM said a police complaint had already been filed by Raje Gowda’s election agent, Sudhir Kumar, and emphasised the need for electoral integrity.
“We want transparency and free and fair elections. That is what our Constitution mandates,” he added.
Stating that the government would pursue legal remedies, Siddaramaiah said, “We are preparing an appeal challenging the returning officer’s announcement in a court of law.”
Responding to a separate query on elections in other states, the CM said there appeared to be an anti-incumbency factor in West Bengal, while results in Tamil Nadu were “surprising,” adding that Vijay’s party was emerging as the largest there.
Following the victory of party candidates in Bagalkote and Davanagere South, Siddaramaiah expressed confidence about future electoral prospects in Karnataka.
“Even in 2028, we will win the Assembly elections. We will come back,” the CM said.
Siddaramaiah added that he would order a forensic examination into the alleged tampering of postal ballots.
