SC Dismisses CBI Plea Against Rhea Chakraborty, Calls It "Frivolous"

The two-judge bench of the Supreme Court on Friday dismissed a petition against actress Rhea Chakraborty, her brother Showik and father Lt Col Indrajit Chakraborty (retd) related to the death of Sushant Singh Rajput. Justices BR Gavai and KV Vishwanathan observed orally that the petition was "frivolous" and filed only because of the "high-profile" accused in the case.

The petition had been filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), the state of Maharashtra and the Bureau of Immigration to challenge a Bombay high court ruling that quashed the look-out-circulars (LOCs) issued against Rhea and her family members, according to LiveLaw.

The report quoted Justice Gavai as saying, "We are warning. You are filing such a frivolous petition, only because one of the accused is a high-profile person...It will be with exemplary cost. Both persons have deep roots in society," when the CBI counsel sought a pass over of the matter.

"If you want cost and some compliments to CBI, we will pass-over," he further said.

The Bombay high court had cancelled the LOC against Rhea Chakraborty and her family members in February. The LOC had been issued by the CBI in 2020 after the death of Sushant Singh Rajput.

Justices Revati Mohite Dere and Manjusha Deshpande allowed petitions filed by Rhea Chakraborty, her brother and their father against the LOC preventing them from travelling abroad.

A high court order lifted the LOC weeks after it was suspended by a vacation bench in December allowing Chakraborty to travel to Dubai for an event, despite CBI strongly opposing it.

The bench had previously questioned the rationale behind issuing the LOCs because of an FIR against Rhea Chakraborty. A debate also arose over the issue of jurisdiction with the FIR initially filed in Patna by Sushant's family before it was taken over by the CBI in Delhi. Rhea Chakraborty's advocates argued for Mumbai's jurisdiction, pointing out the residencies of both sides in the case and the location of the probe.

The bench emphasised a need for finality in legal proceedings raising concerns over a pending case since 2020 where the CBI had not filed a charge sheet.

Rhea's lawyers argued that the LOC should have been issued only if there was concrete evidence that the accused was avoiding arrest or court proceedings.

The death of Sushant Singh Rajput in his Bandra residence on June 14, 2020, ignited widespread controversy and speculation, prompting investigations by multiple agencies, including the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB). Rhea Chakraborty, who was in a relationship with Rajput at the time, became a focal point of the investigation.

Following the filing of a First Information Report (FIR) in Patna, the case was subsequently transferred to the CBI by the Supreme Court. As part of the investigation, Look Out Circulars (LOCs) were issued against Rhea Chakraborty and her brother.