NEW DELHI: The CBI is all set to take up the probe into the alleged suicide of actor Sushant Singh Rajput on a reference from the Bihar government, officials said on Wednesday.
The agency is likely to re-register the FIR filed by Bihar police under IPC sections related to abetment to suicide, criminal conspiracy, cheating among other charges on a complaint from the family of the deceased actor against his rumoured girlfriend Rhea Chakraborty and her family members.
According to the procedure, the CBI has the freedom to return the reference in case there are legal and jurisdictional issues involved and it may seek further clarification but sources in the know said the case will be taken up for investigation.
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar had recommended a CBI probe into the matter amid allegations of Bihar police being stopped by Mumbai police to carry out investigation with strong opposition from the Maharashtra government.
Mumbai Police had registered an Accidental Death Report (ADR) and an investigation is underway in the case.
Till now, the Mumbai Police have recorded statements of 56 people, including Rajput's sisters, Chakraborty and some other film personalities.
It has also recorded the statements of 56 people including Bollywood directors like Aditya Chopra, Mahesh Bhatt and Sanjay Leela Bhansali.
The Centre has forwarded the reference to the CBI which has decided to start the probe on its basis, the officials said.
Rajput, 34, was found hanging from the ceiling of his apartment in suburban Bandra in Mumbai on June 14 and since then Mumbai police has been probing the case.
On July 25, Rajput's father had lodged an FIR at Rajiv Nagar police station in Patna Chakraborty and six others accusing them of abetting the actor's suicide.
Singh accused Chakraborty, a budding TV and film actor, of having befriended his son in May 2019 with the intention of furthering her own career.
Rajput's father, K K Singh, also said they had filed a written complaint on February 25 at the Bandra Police station, nearly four months before his death, stating that the actor's life was in danger.
In a press note, the Mumbai police denied the claim and said Bandra police officials did not receive any written complaint from Rajput's family about threat to his life.
A team of Bihar police had gone to Mumbai to conduct an investigation.
Vinay Tiwari, an IPS officer from Bihar, who landed in Mumbai on Sunday for supervising the probe in the case being conducted by police from that state, was quarantined under the COVID-19 regulations in force in the metropolis.
The team has recorded the statement of Rajput's friend and creative content manager Siddharth Pithani in connection with the actor's death, The deaths of Rajput and his former manager Disha Salian became a political issue as Bihar, the home state of the actor, is likely to have an assembly election later this year.
Amidst claims and counterclaims, BJP MP Narayan Rane on Tuesday made a sensational allegation that Rajput was murdered, without providing any evidence to support it.
Rane also claimed that Disha Salian was also killed, and indicated that the murder may have been preceded by rape.
He claimed the post-mortem report mentioned injuries to her private parts.
Police maintain that she died by suicide.
Maharashtra minister and Shiv Sena leader Anil Parab said the Bihar government's move to recommend a CBI probe into the actor's death case was politically motivated.
"Nitish Kumar is the head of the Bihar administration. He should speak about what is happening in Bihar. This case has acquired political colour and everyone is trying to derive mileage out of it," Parab told reporters when asked about the Bihar government recommending a CBI investigation.
Son of Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, Aaditya, who is also a minister in the state government, said he and his family are being targeted for no reason in the case of Rajput's death and stressed he is not related to the matter.
The Shiv Sena leader said dirty politics is being played following the death of the Bollywood actor and without naming anyone, added that the allegation being levelled is a political stomachache stemming from frustration.
Rajput who started his career on big screen with Kai Po Che, a movie depicting travesty of Gujarat riots in 2002, featured in a biographical film on Indian cricket team captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, "MS Dhoni: The Untold Story".
besides a number of other hits like "Shuddh Desi Romance", "Raabta", "Kedarnath", "Chhichhore" and "Sonchiriya".
Meanwhile, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has summoned actor Rhea Chakraborty for questioning on August 7 in connection with a money laundering case stemming from a complaint filed by Sushant Singh Rajput's father following his death, officials said on Wednesday.
hey said Chakraborty, 28, has been asked to depose before the investigating officer of the case on August 7.
Once she appears, the actor is expected to be questioned about her friendship with Rajput, possible business dealings and the developments that took place over the last few years between them.
Her statement will be recorded by the agency under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
The summons are linked to a money laundering case that was registered by the ED on July 31 on the basis of a Bihar Police FIR in which Sushant Singh Rajput's 74-year-old father K K Singh had accused actress Rhea Chakraborty and her family of abetting the Bollywood actor's suicide.
Rajput, 34, was found hanging in his apartment in Mumbai's Bandra area on June 14.
The central probe agency also questioned Sushant's house manager in Mumbai on Wednesday in this case.
It had grilled the deceased actor's Chartered Accountant (CA) Sandeep Shridhar on August 3.
Under the ED's scanner are at least two companies linked to Rajput and some financial deals involving Chakraborty and her brother Showik.
The ED case, registered on July 31, has been filed against the accused named in the Bihar Police FIR that includes Chakraborty, her family and six others.
Sources in the Maharashtra Home Ministry here said on Wednesday that the state administration is closely monitoring the situation.
Home minister Anil Deshmukh has refused to comment over the transfer of the case which was being probed by the Mumbai police.
But sources in the home ministry said the state government is monitoring the situation closely.
The Centre's unilateral move will raise questions on federalism, the sources said.
(With PTI Inputs)