Actress Rhea Chakraborty, who is facing a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in connection with the death of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput, has got a temporary relief from the CBI as the Bombay High Court (HC) suspended the lookout circular (LOC) notice issued against her.
The LOC notice prevents Chakraborty from travelling abroad without prior permission from the agency. She had sought a suspension of the LOC notice from December 27 to January 2, 2024, in order to attend a brand function in Dubai. She claimed that she was still associated with Drools Pets Pvt. Ltd., a pet food company, and had a letter from it proving her association.
However, the CBI opposed her plea and told the HC that it was verifying her claim and had written to the company to confirm it. The CBI also argued that it did not have jurisdiction to grant relief to Chakraborty as the FIR in the case was registered in Patna and the investigation was being done by its Delhi team.
The HC, however, granted time to the CBI to verify her claim and allowed Chakraborty to approach the vacation bench on December 26 for further relief. The HC also observed that Chakraborty had been granted bail by a special court earlier this month and that she had surrendered her passport on her return.
Chakraborty was arrested by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in September 2020 for allegedly procuring or paying for drugs for Sushant Singh Rajput. She was later released on bail by another special court in October 2020. Sushant Singh Rajput was found dead in his Bandra apartment on June 14, 2020. His father had filed a complaint with the Patna police alleging that his son was depressed and committed suicide due to financial troubles and drug abuse. The case was later transferred to the CBI by an order of the Supreme Court.
Chakraborty has denied any involvement in Sushant Singh Rajput’s death and has claimed that she was his girlfriend at that time. She has also alleged that there was a conspiracy behind his death and that some people were trying to tarnish her image.
