Published 11:35 IST, October 7th 2020
Rhea Chakraborty gets bail from Bombay HC with stringent conditions; no bail for Showik
Rhea Chakraborty has been granted bail by Bombay HC after close to a month stay in Narcotics Control Bureau custody for alleged involvement in a drug cartel.
Rhea Chakraborty has been granted bail by the Bombay High Court after close to a month-long stay in jail following being arrested by Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) for alleged involvement in a drug cartel, in the Sushant Singh Rajput death case drug nexus probe. Sushant Singh Rajput's staff Samuel Miranda and Dipesh Sawant have also received bail. The high court, however, rejected the bail applications of her brother Showik Chakraborty and alleged drug peddler Abdul Parihar.
Rhea has been asked to inform the investigating officer if she plans to leave Greater Mumbai. The High Court ordered Rhea to mark her presence for ten days in the nearest police station after release. She should deposit her passport and should not travel outside the country without the prior permission of the court, and pay a surety of Rs 1 lakh.
“We are Delighted by the Order of the Honourable Bombay High Court granting bail to Rhea Chakraborty. Truth and Justice have prevailed and ultimately the submissions on facts and law have been accepted by Justice Sarang V Kotwal. The arrest and custody of Rhea was totally unwarranted and beyond the reach of law. The hounding and witch hunt by three central agencies .. the CBI , ED and NCB of Rhea should come to an end. We remain committed to Truth. Satyamev Jayate ” said Rhea’s lawyer Satish Maneshinde after three different courts had declined to release Rhea, and Showik still languishing.
The bail pleas of Dipesh Sawant and Samuel Miranda have been allowed on furnishing of PR bond of Rs.50,000/- each, the HC noted. Their passports have also been impounded.
A special NDPS court in Mumbai on Tuesday had extended the judicial remand of Rhea Chakraborty, Showik Chakraborty and others till October 20. The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), probing the drug angle into the late actor's death has arrested at least 20 people so far and has summoned various Bollywood celebrities.
Last month, the Narcotic Control Bureau while opposing bail pleas filed by actor Rhea Chakraborty and five others in the Bollywood drug case told the Bombay High Court that all persons arrested till now are connected to each other and it is a syndicate. "All persons arrested till now, are connected with each other and it is a syndicate. There was a regular link and purchasing. Therefore, the court will have to consider the case as a whole, not one accused from another," the NCB said in the court.
The NCB was represented before the High Court by ASG Anil Singh who argued in detail before the HC concluded the arguments of all lawyers of the accused and reserved the matter for orders. Before the ASG pointed out the complicity of all the accused in this case and opposed the bail for each accused, all the five accused were represented by their lawyers before the Bombay High Court.
Rhea and Showik Chakraborty were represented by Advocate Satish Maneshinde, Samuel Miranda was represented by Advocate Subodh Desai, Advocate Tarak Sayyad appeared for Abdel Basit Parihar and for Dipesh Sawant Advocate Rajesh Rathod put his arguments. Earlier on September 11, the court had rejected the bail plea of Rhea, her brother Showik Chakraborty, and others observing that if she is released on bail she may alert other accused and they may destroy the evidence in the matter.
The NCB had launched an investigation into the drugs case after it received official communication from the Enforcement Directorate (ED), which was investigating the money trail related to actor Sushant Singh Rajput's death case. In the investigation, many revelations surfaced including various chats related to drug consumption, procurement, usage and transportation.
Rajput was found hanging in his Bandra apartment on June 14. The Mumbai Police had earlier registered an Accidental Death Report (ADR) and launched an investigation. However, the CBI took over the probe into the high-profile case in August following the Supreme Court's nod. Rajput's father KK Singh had on July 25 lodged a complaint with the Bihar police against Rhea Chakraborty and her family members accusing them of abetting his suicide.
Updated 11:35 IST, October 7th 2020