Daijiworld Media Network - Mumbai
Mumbai, Sep 14: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has named Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray and his father, former Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, among several people whose roles require investigation in connection with the death of actor-manager Disha Salian.
The names figure in an FIR registered by the CBI following a Bombay High Court direction for a thorough investigation into the circumstances surrounding Salian's death in June 2020.
The FIR also names actors Dino Morea and Sooraj Pancholi, along with Rhea Chakraborty and her brother Showik Chakraborty. Their roles have been listed for investigation in connection with the alleged principal offences, criminal conspiracy, the alleged creation and propagation of a false suicide narrative, and alleged suppression, destruction or fabrication of evidence.
The FIR further mentions Aaditya Thackeray's bodyguards, former Mumbai police officers Sachin Waze and Param Bir Singh, DCP Vishal Thakur, then Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh and several other serving and former police personnel.
Officers associated with Malvani Police Station, doctors and staff linked to the delayed post-mortem examination and officials of the Forensic Science Laboratory in Kalina, including Assistant Chemical Analyser N.P. Bhale, have also been named.
Security guards of Regent Galaxy Building, including Sushil Kumar Yadav and Shivmurad Gautam alias Munna, also figure in the FIR. It additionally refers to senior members of the Special Investigation Team (SIT) and other senior police officers under whose supervision the earlier investigation or inquiry was conducted.
The FIR also lists several other individuals and unidentified persons whose roles, according to the agency, require investigation in connection with the alleged offences and the subsequent alleged cover-up.
Salian was found dead on June 8, 2020, after falling from a building in Mumbai. Her death occurred six days before actor Sushant Singh Rajput was found dead at his Bandra residence on June 14. Salian's death had initially been recorded as an Accidental Death Report (ADR).
The CBI registered the FIR after the Bombay High Court directed the agency to investigate the case. During an earlier hearing, a division bench of Justices Bharti Dangre and Manjusha Deshpande questioned why only an ADR had been registered despite claims by Salian's family that she had been murdered.
The court also noted that Salian's family had not received copies of her post-mortem report and ADR even five years after her death.
Following the court's direction, Salian's father, Satish Salian, said he had shared details surrounding his daughter's death with investigators and expressed confidence that the probe would begin.
Speaking to ANI on Friday, Satish said he had provided investigators with the names of several people whom he wanted examined.
"I stated the facts exactly as they were; I told them everything that happened to my daughter. I listed all the names: Aditya, Sooraj Pancholi, Dino Morea, and the bodyguards. They noted everything down," he said.
He added that investigators had told him they would take action based on the information provided by him.
"The truth cannot be defeated. God stands where the truth is; that is why justice will be served," Satish said.
The fresh CBI investigation has also drawn a reaction from Sushant Singh Rajput's sister Shweta Singh Kirti.
In a social media video, Shweta expressed hope that the probe would help establish the truth surrounding Salian's death.
"Truth has its own power it can be suppressed for some time, troubled, but it cannot be defeated," she said.
Shweta welcomed the CBI inquiry, saying the development had given hope to many of Rajput's followers.
Salian's death has remained a subject of public and political debate, particularly because of its timing shortly before Rajput's death. The CBI probe will now examine the circumstances surrounding her death and the allegations and concerns raised by her family.