Sooraj Pancholi acquitted Jiah Khan case, read what judge said
A special Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) court in Mumbai issued its decision on the death of actress Jiah Khan on Friday.
Sooraj Pancholi, the actor accused of aiding Jiah Khan’s suicide, was acquitted. He was present at the CBI court when the verdict was announced.
“This court cannot hold you (Sooraj Pancholi) guilty due to a lack of evidence, so you are acquitted,” stated Judge AS Sayyed of the special CBI court in Mumbai.
Jiah Khan, best known for her role in Nishabd alongside Amitabh Bachchan, was discovered dead at her Mumbai home on June 3, 2013. She was 25 years old.
Based on a letter allegedly written by her that was seized a week later, Mumbai Police charged Sooraj Pancholi with section 306 (abetment to suicide) and arrested him.
In the letter, she discussed her tumultuous relationship with Sooraj, alleging that he physically and mentally abused her.
Although a Mumbai court denied Sooraj’s bail application, he was granted bail on July 1, 2013, after posting a 50,000 bond. The court acquitted Sooraj Pancholi on July 2, ruling that he was not responsible for Jiah Khan’s suicide.
Rabia Khan, the late actor’s mother, requested a thorough and extensive investigation after she was dissatisfied with the court’s decision.
The case was moved from Mumbai Police to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) around a year after Jiah Khan’s death by the Bombay High Court.
Rabia Khan had testified before the special CBI court that her daughter had been murdered by her boyfriend at the time, Sooraj Pancholi.
Jiah Khan’s mother had previously stated that her daughter was depressed. Following the transfer of the case to the CBI, Sooraj’s father, actor Aditya Pancholi, filed a defamation suit against Rabia Khan for Rs 100 crores.
Rabia filed a new application in the Bombay High Court last year to revive the nine-year-old case, claiming flaws in the previous probe performed by the CBI. Rabia’s case, however, was dismissed by the Bombay High Court.
Rabia claimed in her appeal that her daughter was murdered and requested a new investigation by an independent and special agency with support from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) of the United States.
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