The Central Bureau of Investigation on Monday said that it was investigating all aspects of the death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput, NDTV reported. The remarks came days after the lawyer representing Rajput’s family claimed that the actor was strangled and murdered and accused the CBI of “delaying” the investigation.
“The Central Bureau of Investigation is conducting a professional investigation related to the death of Sushant Singh Rajput in which all aspects are being looked at and no aspect has been ruled out as of date,” the agency said in a statement. “The investigation is continuing.”
Rajput was found dead in his apartment in Bandra on June 14, in what the Mumbai Police said was a case of suicide.
The lawyer, Vikas Singh, had on Friday said that he was getting “frustrated” by the delay by the CBI in converting the abatement of suicide to a murder case. “The doctor who is part of the AIIMS [All India Institute Of Medical Science] team had told me long back that the photos sent by me indicated 200% that it’s [a] death by strangulation and not suicide,” he tweeted.
However, Sudhir Gupta, the head of the AIIMS forensic team, refuted this claim. “No findings given to CBI yet...final meeting has to be scheduled,” he had said. “No conclusive opinion could be made just by seeing pictures. Our opinion will be clear and conclusive based on evidence.”
The actor’s family’s lawyer had also alleged that the CBI inquiry had “suddenly slowed down” and the focus was diverted to a Narcotics Control Bureau-initiated drug inquiry, adding that this was a “fashion parade” of Bollywood stars.
On September 23, the Narcotics Control Bureau had summoned actors Deepika Padukone, Sara Ali Khan, Shraddha Kapoor and Rakul Preet Singh as part of their inquiry into the drug angle of the case.
The federal drug agency has already arrested actor Rhea Chakraborty and her brother Showik Chakraborty for their alleged role in procuring drugs to Sushant Singh Rajput. The agency has described Rhea Chakraborty as an “active member of a drug syndicate”.
Rhea Chakraborty has claimed that she is being framed in the case and has made multiple serious allegations against the Narcotics Control Bureau. The actor has claimed she was “coerced into making self-incriminatory” confessions, which she has now retracted. She said she had “not committed any crime whatsoever and had been falsely implicated in the case”.
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