Sushant Singh Rajput death: Bihar police records statements of six persons, including Ankita Lokhande

The Bihar police team, which is in Mumbai to investigate an “ abetment to suicide ” case related to the death of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput, has so far recorded the statements of six persons, an official said on Saturday.

The four-member Bihar police team arrived in Mumbai on Wednesday to probe the ‘abetment to suicide’ case registered against Rajput’s friend, actress Rhea Chakraborty, and others in Patna.

“Till now, the police team from Bihar has met the late actor’s friends, colleagues, and relatives. They have recorded the statements of six persons- Rajput’s sister, who stays in Versova, former girlfriend Ankita Lokhande, a cook, his friends, and colleagues,” the official said.

The police team is also likely to question the members of Rajput’s staff, he said, adding that some of them had been changed.

“They also gathered information about Rajput’s various bank accounts and also visited the banks to look into the financial transactions,” he said.

The visiting team had on Friday gone to the Crime Branch office to submit an application seeking assistance from the Mumbai Police in probing the case.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court is scheduled to hear on 5 August a plea filed by Chakraborty, who has sought transfer of the FIR lodged against her.

The actress has said in her plea that she was in a live-in relationship with Rajput and has been in deep trauma due to the death of the actor and moreover getting rape and death threats.

“It is pertinent to mention that the deceased and petitioner were in a live-in relationship since a year up till 8 June, 2020 when the petitioner had temporarily shifted to her own residence in Mumbai,” she has said in her plea.

Chakraborty has also said in her plea that, “The deceased (Rajput) was suffering from depression for some time and was also on anti-depressants and he committed suicide on the morning of 14 June, 2020 at his Bandra residence by hanging himself.”

She has said in her plea that it becomes abundantly clear that the commencement of investigation in Patna is erroneous in absence of any cause of action having arisen at Patna.

Krishna Kumar Singh (74), Rajput’s father, had lodged a complaint against Chakraborty and six others, including her family members, for alleged abetment to suicide, in Patna on Tuesday.

The Patna case was registered under various IPC sections including 341 (wrongful restraint), 342 (wrongful confinement), 380 (theft in dwelling house), 406 (criminal breach of trust), 420 (cheating) and 306 (abetment of 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.

Singh has also filed a caveat in the apex court seeking to be heard before any order is passed on Chakraborty’s plea.

A caveat is a pre-emptive legal measure taken to ensure that a party does not get any favourable order without a notice or a hearing accorded to the opponent.

Rajput was found hanging in his suburban Bandra apartment on 14 June. The Mumbai police, who are already investigating the alleged suicide by the actor, have questioned several people from the film industry in connection with the case.

(With inputs from Press Trust of India)

*

A collection of Suicide prevention helpline  numbers are available here.  Please reach out if you or anyone you know is in need of support. The All-India helpline number is: 022 2754 6669