Indian actor Sooraj Pancholi was acquitted by a special court due to lack of evidence in the decade-old case of actor Jiah Khan, it was reported.
Jiah, primarily known for her role in Aamir Khan’s movie ‘Ghajni’, and ‘Nishabd’ alongside Amitabh Bachchan, was found dead in her home in Mumbai on June 3, 2013.
Pancholi made his acting debut in Salman Khan’s production movie ‘Hero’ two years following Khan’s death. He was often questioned about the case during promotions and also broke down during the trailer release.
He only appeared in two more films after that, which were largely unsuccessful.
At that time, Mumbai Police had booked the actor under Section 306 (abetment to suicide) and arrested him based on a letter seized on June 10, 2013, which was purportedly written by Jiah.
Pancholi, son of actors Aditya Pancholi and Zarina Wahab, was allegedly in a relationship with Jiah.
Her mother, Rabia Khan, had alleged that her daughter was murdered.
Rabia moved the Bombay High Court in October 2013, seeking a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the case. She also claimed that her daughter was in an abusive relationship with Sooraj. The two had begun dating in September 2012, according to reports.
On the order of the Bombay high court, the CBI took over the probe from the Maharashtra Police in July 2014.
Following his bail, Rabia moved the Bombay High Court and sought a transfer of the investigation to the CBI. The agency then filed a charge sheet in December 2015.
Rabia alleged that the police and CBI had not collected legal evidence to prove that her daughter had committed suicide.
Sooraj, in his final statement filed before the court, claimed that the investigation and charge sheet were false, adding that prosecution witnesses had testified against him on the behest of Rabia, the police and CBI.
During her deposition, Rabia told the CBI court that Sooraj used to subject Jiah to physical and verbal abuse. She also stated that neither the police nor the CBI had collected any ‘legal evidence’ to prove that her daughter had died of suicide.
According to the CBI, Pancholi had “hidden facts and fabricated information” during questioning. He had allegedly also refused to undergo the polygraph or brain-mapping tests the agency wanted to conduct.
In 2018, Pancholi filed a petition in the Bombay High Court, seeking the dismissal of the charges against him in the suicide case. The trial began a year later in a Special CBI Court during which 22 witnesses were examined.
The final verdict acquitting Pancholi was delivered on April 28.
Following the verdict, Rabia said, “I will not give up hope…I will keep fighting. I will approach the High Court, Supreme Court, whatever is required to get justice for my daughter,” she was quoted as saying by News 18.
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