Centre seeks to be party in Chakraborty’s SC petition

THE MOVE CAME AFTER RHEA CHAKRABORTY’S LEGAL TEAM OBJECTED TO THE INTERVENTION OF CENTRAL GOVT IN SUSHANT DEATH CASE

nNEWDELHI: Theuniongovernment approachedthesupremecourton Friday, seeking to be a party in a petition by actor Rhea Chakrabortywhohasappealedthatafirst information report (FIR) filed against her over Bollywood star Sushant Singh Rajput’s death be transferredfrompatnatomumbai.

The FIR, which is based on a complaint by Rajput’s father and accuses Chakraborty of abetting her 34-year-old boyfriend’s suicide, is now being probed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The Centre allowed the agency to take up the case on the basis of a request by Bihar, Rajput’s home state.

The department of personnel and training (DOPT) plea in the Supreme Court said the Union of India is a “necessary and proper” party to the proceedings. The movecameinthewakeofchakraborty’s legal team raising objections to the Centre’s intervention. Maharashtra, Bihar, and KK Singh—rajput’sfather—areparties in her petition in the top court.

Doptfileditsimpleadmentplea through under secretary Satya Prakash Ram Tripathi. “The present impleadment application has been necessitated by virtue of the events that have taken place after filing of the present transfer petition,” it said.

Attheheartofthecaseisaquestion of who the case originally belongs to — Mumbai or Bihar. Chakraborty’s legal team says the Bihar government cannot recommend a CBI probe since the police fromthatstatedonothaveanyjurisdiction to even investigate the case.themumbaipolice,too,have claimed that they have exclusive right to probe the case since the incident occurred under its jurisdiction.

Rajput, who had a short but promising career, was found hangingathisbandraresidencein suburban Mumbai on June 14.

Onfriday,biharfiledanaffidavitinthesupremecourt,stressing that Section 179 of the Code of Criminalprocedure(crpc)allows an offence to be “tried either at the place where the offence has been committed or where the consequence ensues”. In this case, the consequence of the unnatural death was in Patna, where the late actor’s family resides, it argued.

The Bihar government also sought the dismissal of Chakraborty’stransferplea,andtermedit “premature, misconceived and non-maintainable”.

The affidavit, filed through advocate Keshav Mohan, said the Bihar Police have the jurisdiction in the case and accused Mumbai Police of non-cooperation. It said the Mumbai Police are “apparently siding with the petitioner (Chakraborty)forthereasonsbest known to them”.

Hearing Chakraborty’s plea on Wednesday, the court asked Bihar, Maharashtra and Rajput’s father to reply to Chakraborty’s plea within three days, and asked aboutthestatusofinvestigationby the Mumbai Police. The Mumbai Policehavefoundthecauseofrajput’s death as “asphyxia due to hanging”,filedanaccidentaldeath report(adr)andbegananinvestigation.

Whilebiharfileditsaffidaviton Friday, Maharashtra and Singh are yet to file their replies. The hearingisexpectedtoresumenext week. “The possibility of the Rhea Chakraborty case being argued out on the next date in the Supreme Court can only be possible if Maharashtra government defends its jurisdiction. The CBI cannot operate without express consent of Maharashtra. I also see the possibility of Mumbai Police completingitsprobeandputtingit before the court on the next date andsaying‘wehavenothingmore to investigate’. Only a thin chance remains that Maharashtra will accept the situation as fait accompli and concede ground to CBI, whichidoubtwillhappen,”senior advocate Sanjay Hegde told HT.

Meanwhile, another petition before the Supreme Court on Friday said the entire case has not yet gone to CBI as the agency is only examining the FIR filed by Bihar Police on July 25.

The petition by law student Dwivendra Dubey failed to impress a three-judge bench headedbychiefjusticeofindiasa Bobde. “You are a total stranger who is unnecessarily interfering in the case. The victim’s father is pursuing the case,” the bench said through video-conferencing, while dismissing the petition.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta appeared in the matter to informthatcbihastakenoverthe probe from Patna Police.

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