Sushant Singh Rajput death: Will CBI be allowed to probe case? Supreme Court verdict today on Rhea Chakraborty's plea

The Supreme Court is expected to pronounce a verdict today (i.e. August 19, Wednesday) at 11 AM in the Sushant Singh Rajput death case, delivering the final word on whether the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) will be allowed to take over the investigation into the actor's death. This comes in view of a complaint filed by Sushant Singh Rajput's father KK Singh in Bihar against actor Rhea Chakraborty, who had earlier sought the transfer of the FIR from Patna to Mumbai.

The Bihar government has already handed over the FIR lodged in Patna to the CBI while the Maharashtra government is opposing the handing over of the probe to the CBI. 

34-year-old Sushant Singh Rajput was found dead in his Mumbai apartment on June 14. The Mumbai Police originally began the investigation into the actor's death, interrogating industry professionals and suspecting mental health-related issues. Sushant Singh Rajput's father, KK Singh, however, put the case in the media spotlight when over a month after the actor's death, he alleged that his son was driven to suicide on being mentally and financially harassed by actor Rhea Chakraborty.

The FIR in Patna was registered by Sushant's father against Rhea and others for alleged offences under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including 306 (abetment of suicide), 341 (punishment for wrongful restraint), 342 (punishment for wrongful confinement), 380 (theft in dwelling house), 406 (punishment for criminal breach of trust) and 420 (Cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property).

This gave rise to a slew of conspiracy theories, online campaigns, and media drives to 'bring justice' to Sushant Singh Rajput by uncovering the real reason for his suicide.

Notably, KK Singh had lodged his FIR in Bihar, the actor's native place, and this birthed a complex legal wrangle that spans from the Mumbai Police and the Bihar Police to the CBI and the Enforcement Directorate (ED).  The ongoing case at the Supreme Court is to decide which authority has jurisdiction over the case.

The Maharashtra government argues that the Mumbai police should look into the matter. The cops in Mumbai have already registered statements of around 56 people in the case. Since the incident took place in Mumbai and everyone ranging from the victim to the accused and the witnesses are all from Mumbai, the jurisdiction of the case should also reside with the Mumbai Police, the Maharashtra government has contended.

Even though Sushant Singh Rajput's father had lodged an FIR in Patna, he later demanded that the case be handed over to the CBI for a proper unbiased inquiry. On the other hand, while in a reply to the Supreme Court, accused Rhea Chakravarty had contended that Bihar Police's FIR was "completely illegal" and that the state had no jurisdiction to send the case over to the CBI but also maintained that she has no objection in case the Supreme Court decided to transfer the case to the CBI.

"The comments made at the last hearing before the Hon'ble Supreme Court on the 11th of August 2020, make it evident that this has become more about politics than the truth. Unwanted and irrelevant submissions are being made. The number of politicians taking advantage of this case on the eve of elections in Bihar," Rhea said in a statement on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, the Bihar government has rejected Rhea's charges and claimed that it has the legal rights to file the FIR, and the Bihar government was following the law in seeking a CBI probe in Sushant's death case.

The case rests on the Supreme Court at this point to decide the jurisdiction of the probe over the Sushant Singh Rajput death case.