Sushant Singh Rajput Death: Filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt Joins Probe

Filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt today joined police investigations into actor Sushant Singh Rajput's death last month. Mr Bhatt reached the Santacruz police station at 11:30 AM and recorded his statements before Deputy Commissioner of Police Abhishek Trimukhe.

Besides Mr Bhatt, Karan Johar's manager and actor Kangana Ranaut have been asked to join investigations into the case, Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh said on Sunday.

"Mahesh Bhatt will be called for questioning and we will later call Karan Johar''s manager too. If required Karan Johar can also be called for the questioning in Sushant Singh Rajput case," he told ANI yesterday.

Kangana Ranaut -- who has alleged that Sushant Singh Rajput was a victim of nepotism in the film industry -- has also been summoned by the Bandra police, which is investigating the case. Ms Ranaut, who is in Himachal Pradesh since March 17, has requested police to send a team to the state to record her statement in person.

Sushant Singh Rajput, 34, was found dead in his home in Bandra on June 14. The police said it was death by suicide.

The police are investigating allegations that professional rivalry, besides clinical depression, drove the actor to suicide.

The police have so far questioned a few Bollywood personalities in the case, including casting director Mukesh Chhabra, Yash Raj Films (YRF) Chairman Aditya Chopra, YRFs casting director Shanoo Sharma and film critic Rajeev Masand.

Sushant Singh Rajput debuted in the 2013 film "Kai Po Che" and went on to do several films, including "PK", "MS Dhoni: The Untold Story", "Kedarnath", "Sonchiriya" and "Chhichhore" - one of his last films that was widely appreciated.

His death led to a deluge of tribute and recriminations on social media involving the Hindi film industry, which has been battling allegations of nepotism and cliques.