SSR case: Bombay HC refuses to quash FIR against actor’s sister – Hindustan Times

Late actor Sushant Singh Rajput’s sister Priyanka Singh will have to face prosecution for allegedly sending him a prescription with medicines containing psychotropic substances controlled under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985.

The Bombay high court on Monday refused to quash the FIR registered by Bandra Police on September 7, 2020, against Singh on the basis of a complaint lodged by Rajput’s girlfriend, actor Rhea Chakraborty.

A division bench of justices SS Shinde and MS Karnik, however, quashed criminal proceedings against Meetu Singh, another sister of the late actor, after finding that there was no material against her.

Advocate Madhav Throat, who represented the sisters, said, Singh will now move the Supreme Court, challenging the HC judgment.

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As per Chakraborty’s complaint, Singh had, on June 8, 2020, sent the late actor prescriptions given by one Dr. Tarun Kumar, a cardiologist attached to Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital in Delhi without examining the actor, and consumption of the psychotropic substances in the prescribed medicines “may have caused and contributed to the suicidal death of the actor”.

The sisters have moved the high court for quashing of the FIR, claiming the statements made therein did not make out any cognisable offence. Their petition stated that lodging of the complaint by Chakraborty was nothing but a feeble attempt on her part to scuttle investigations against her by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) and blame Rajput’s family for his suicide, as she was on the verge of being arrested by NCB. Rhea was arrested by NCB on September 8.

Their counsel, senior advocate Vikas Singh, had submitted that there was gross delay in registering the offence, when Chakraborty was aware of the WhatsApp chats exchanged between the late actor and Singh on June 8, but she lodged her complaint on September 7.

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Singh had also pointed out that the telemedicine guidelines issued by the Medical Council of India permitted prescription of the medicines even on first consultation.

Advocate Satish Maneshinde, who represented Chakraborty during the hearing, had also urged the court to allow the investigation into the allegations, contending that in a case of abetment to suicide, proximate reasons are most important and since the actor allegedly ended his life six days after the prescription, it could be the most proximate reason behind his death.