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Patna : Bihar government on August 4, 2020, decided to recommend a CBI inquiry into the sensational death by suicide case of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput on a request from his father K K Singh . This was announced by Bihar CM Nitish Kumar on August 4 in a tweet. Sushant, an actor from Bihar, was found hanging in his rented apartment in Mumbai’s Bandra on June 14, 2020
Nitish said that on being informed by DGP, Bihar, Gupteshwar Pandey, about the latter’s talk with the late actor’s father K K Singh seeking an inquiry by the central investigating agency into the matter, he told the DGP to get a proposal ready immediately and send it to the state government. “The state government will formally recommend the case to be handed over to the CBI on August 4 itself after completing all the procedures”, Nitish added
The development comes a day before the Supreme Court is slated to hear a petition of Rajput’s rumoured girlfriend Rhea Chakraborty, an accused in the FIR filed in Patna, seeking transfer of the case to Mumbai, where an investigation in the matter is already on.
Bihar Government and Maharashtra Government have already filed separate caveats in the top court seeking to be heard before any order is passed on Chakraborty’s plea. The father of the late actor has also filed a caveat in the apex court.
A close associate of CM Nitish Kumar said that that Sushant Singh Rajput’s father made a plea for the CBI inquiry citing hurdles created by the Mumbai police to the investigating team of the Patna police to prevent fair probe.
After series of complaints against the Mumbai police for not cooperating with the four-member Patna police probe team, the acrimony between Maharashtra and Bihar police over jurisdictional issues escalated after an IPS officer Vinay Tiwari , who had landed in Mumbai on August 2, 2020, for leading the SIT probe in the case, was quarantined under the COVID-19 regulations in force in the city. The development was deplored by Nitish who had termed it as inappropriate and forcible.
Bihar DEGP Pandey has said that they have lodged a formal protest with the Mumbai municipal authorities over the “forcible quarantine” of SP Vinay Tiwari who was on official duty.
Regarding decision to hand over the inquiry to the CBI, Nitish said, “I have been saying that the state government will recommend a CBI probe if Sushant’s father asks for it. It may be noted that Sushant’s 74-year-old father K K Singh had lodged an FIR against actress Rhea Chakraborty and others in Patna on July 25, 2020, in connection with his son’s death. A police team from Patna had left for Mumbai on July 27, 2020, and began its probe.
The matter was raised in Bihar Legislative Assembly on August 3, 2020, where legislators cutting across party lines unanimously demanded for a CBI probe into the case. The demand was first raised by Neeraj Kumar Singh “Bablu”, a BJP MLA who also happens to be Sushant’s cousin. Sushant’s father said he had forewarned Mumbai police about threat to the 34-year- old actor’s life way back in February 2020 but it failed to take note of it.