Nearly two and half years after upcoming model-actress Jiah Khan was found dead at her Juhu residence, the CBI on Wednesday filed a charge-sheet in the high-profile case, in which Suraj Pancholi, the son of Bollywood couple Aditya Pancholi and Zarina Wahab, is an accused.
The filing of chargesheet came a fortnight after the sessions court here sought to know the status of a probe by the CBI in the case after the Bombay High Court transferred it to the central investigating agency in July last year.
On November 18, Special Women’s Court Judge AS Shende had noted that the probe agency had finished the investigations but “the charge sheet has still been not filed”.
Jiah (25) allegedly hanged herself at her Juhu residence on the night of June 3, 2013. Jiah's body was discovered by her mother Rabia Amin Khan.
Twenty-one-year-old Suraj, who was the last person whom Jiah had spoken to on the night of June 3, 2013 before she committed suicide by hanging herself later that night, was arrested on June 10, 2013 and booked under IPC Section 306 of Indian Penal Code for allegedly abetting Jiah’s suicide.
Suraj had been arrested on the basis of a letter, purportedly written by Jiah, which was found by her mother Rabiyah Khan and her sister from Jiah’s bedroom, three days after her the actress’ suicide.
However, Jiah’s mother Rabia moved the High Court seeking a CBI probe into her daughter’s death on a strong suspicion that her daughter had been murdered. On occasions — once in October last year and again in January this yearm Rabia had moved the high court for transferring the case from the Mumbai Police to the CBI.