Rhea Chakraborty has been accused of a role in actor Sushant Singh Rajput's death by his family.
Highlights
- Probe agency wants to question her in in a money laundering case
- The agency took note of a First Information Report by Bihar Police
- Sushant Singh Rajput was found dead at his Mumbai home on June 14
Actor Rhea Chakraborty has been questioned for more than nine hours by the Enforcement Directorate in the Sushant Singh Rajput investigation after her request to put it off was rejected by the agency this morning. She, her brother Showik Chakraborty and former manager Shruti Modi were questioned in separate rooms at the agency's office in Mumbai, said sources.
Rhea Chakraborty may be called for more questioning next week. She had asked for her questioning to be deferred citing an ongoing Supreme Court hearing on her petition. But the Enforcement Directorate rejected it.
"Rhea Chakraborty is a law abiding citizen. In view of the fact that Enforcement Directorate has informed the media that the request to postpone the attendance is rejected, she has appeared in the ED at the appointed time and date," Rhea Chakraborty's lawyer Satish Maneshinde said.
Rhea Chakraborty has been accused of a role in actor Sushant Singh Rajput's death by his family, which has alleged that she transferred money from his accounts and mentally harassed him. The Bollywood actor died by suicide on June 14, according to the Mumbai police. Sushant Singh Rajput's friend Siddharth Pithani has also been summoned by the Enforcement Directorate, which investigates financial crimes.
The agency is questioning Rhea Chakraborty and various others in a money laundering case it filed over what it believes were "suspicious transactions" worth Rs 15 crore. The agency took note of a First Information Report or FIR by Bihar Police based on a complaint by Sushant Singh Rajput's family.
Sources in the agency claim money from two of the four bank accounts belonging to Sushant Singh Rajput was transferred to Rhea Chakraborty. But the amount is nowhere close to the alleged Rs 15 crore. Sources close to Rhea Chakraborty say the transactions were not unusual for any couple in a relationship. The two lived together, went to holidays and had also started a company along with Rhea Chakraborty's family members, said the sources.
The Supreme Court is hearing Rhea Chakraborty's petition challenging Bihar's jurisdiction and to transfer the case to Maharashtra, where the Mumbai police has been investigating whether Sushant Singh Rajput was pushed to despair by Bollywood cliques and rivalries. The Mumbai Police has questioned over 50 people on allegations that the actor was suffering from depression and had felt slighted in the film industry.
The Bihar Police's parallel probe against Rhea Chakraborty sparked a turf war between cops in Patna and Mumbai.
On Wednesday, the centre handed over the Bihar Police case to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) following demands from politicians and the actor's family.
A crack CBI unit that has investigated high-profile crimes like the Vijay Mallya case has taken charge of the inquiry, naming Rhea Chakraborty among six accused.
Rhea Chakraborty, who has denied all charges, had called for a CBI probe earlier but said yesterday that the agency's investigation at this point will be "totally illegal and beyond any known legal principles, affecting the Federal Structure of the Nation."