Political lines get blurred as Bihar lawmakers demand CBI probe into Sushant s death

    Patna, Aug 3 (PTI) The demand for a CBI inquiry into
the death of Patna-born actor Sushant Singh Rajput resonated
in the Bihar legislature Monday, eliciting support from
lawmakers cutting across party lines.
    The demand was first raised by Neeraj Kumar Singh
Bablu, a BJP MLA and the deceased stars cousin, when members
were allowed to speak on the subject by Speaker Vijay Kumar
Chaudhary after the passage of 12 bills by the House, which
assembled for a truncated, day-long monsoon session.
    Turning towards Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Bablu
requested the state government to hand over the probe to the
CBI.
    "It is evident that the Maharashtra government is
trying to put hurdles in the way of Bihar police, preventing
it from investigating the matter properly, he alleged.
    Bablu's wife Nutan Singh, a BJP MLC, also raised the
issue in the legislative council.
    The BJP MLA underscored the "forcible quarantine" of
an IPS officer from Patna, hours after he landed in Mumbai on
Sunday, to buttress his point.
    The demand for handing over the matter to the central
agency was seconded by leader of the opposition Tejashwi
Yadav, who asserted, RJD was the first party to have made
such a demand. I had written a letter to the CBI shortly after
Rajputs death and also requested that the upcoming film city
in Rajgir be named after the deceased actor.
    Congress legislature party leader Sadanand Singh, who
is also a former Speaker of the House, suggested that a
resolution be passed in support of the demand for a CBI
inquiry into the actors death.
    Raju Tiwari, an MLA of Ram Vilas Paswans LJP, and
Awadhesh Kumar Singh of the Congress were among others who
rose to speak in favor of a CBI inquiry.
    Rajput was found hanging from the ceiling of his
Bandra residence on June 14 last. The Mumbai police registered
a UD (unnatural death case) and has been recording statements
of people known to be close to the deceased actor.
    However, the matter took a new turn when the actors
father KK Singh lodged a complaint at the Rajiv Nagar police
station in Patna, accusing actress Rhea Chakraborty, Rajput's
girlfriend, and her family members of abetment to suicide.
The complaint formed the basis of the FIR lodged by Patna
police.
    Several other allegations were made by Singh against
Chakraborty, including withdrawal of large sums of money from
Rajput's bank account and wrongful confinement.
    A special investigating team was set up by the Bihar
police to probe the matter. Patna SP City Vinay Tiwari reached
Mumbai on Sunday to lead the investigation but ended up being
quarantined by municipal authorities in the western metropolis
which has been reeling under a severe outbreak of the
coronavirus.
    The ruling Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress combine has been
accused by its opponents of trying to shield the alleged
culprits and acting under the influence of a powerful lobby in
Bollywood, who are said to have given a short shrift to Rajput
while he was struggling to make his mark in the film industry.
    In Bihar, leaders of all parties, including the
Congress, have disapproved of the Maharashtra governments
response in the matter and spoken in favour of handing over
the case to the CBI.
    Meanwhile, a petition has been filed in the Supreme
Court by Chakraborty who has sought transfer of the case from
Patna to Mumbai, challenging the Bihar governments
jurisdiction in the matter.
    The Bihar government, which has roped in former
Attorney General of India Mukul Rohatgi to appear on its
behalf, has decided to oppose Chakraborty's petition. PTI AR
NAC
SK SK

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)