New Delhi | Jagran Entertainment Desk: The series of sensational revelations surrounding Sushant Singh Rajput’s death continue with a report claiming that the late actor’s friend and flatmate Siddharth Pithani informed the CBI that eight hard-drives were destroyed at Sushant’s residence on June 8, the day his girlfriend Rhea Chakraborty left the house.
According to an India Today report, Rhea and Sushant had a fight before the latter left the actor’s residence where the two were living together and Sushant was found dead on June 14.
The report quoted CBI sources saying that Pithani revealed that he was not aware of the content in the hard drive. He also informed the probe agency that an IT professional was present there to destroy the drives.
Rhea and Sushant were present in the same room along with actor’s househelp Dipesh Sawant and his cook Neeraj Singh while the hard drives were being destroyed.
Following the revelation, Vikas Singh, the lawyer of Sushant's father KK Singh, told India Today that they suspect the involvement of some big names in the case. He also demanded suspension of Mumbai Police Commissioner and the DCP of that area.
CBI has questioned Siddharth and Neeraj twice and has also grilled Sushant’s CA Sandeep Sridhar and his former accountant Rajat Mewati.
Other than the CBI and Enforcement Directorate, now Narcotics Bureau has also joined the probe following the revelations Rhea’s suspicious WhatsApp chats which indicate towards a possible illegal drug syndicate in the sensational case.
The NCB has filed a criminal case against Rhea and others to probe their alleged dealings in banned drugs. sections 20, 22, 27 and 29 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (NDPS) have been pressed in the complaint filed by the federal anti-drugs agency on an official reference received from the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
These sections under the NDPS pertain to punishment for contravention in relation to cannabis plant and cannabis (20), punishment for contravention in relation to psychotropic substances (22), punishment for consumption of any narcotic drug or psychotropic substance (27) and punishment for abetment and criminal conspiracy (29).
The agency is soon expected to summon Rhea, flatmate and creative manager of Rajput Siddharth Pithani, his house and business managers, accountant, his domestic helps and some more people for questioning.
The ED, which is probing a money laundering angle into the death of Rajput, has questioned Rhea twice earlier and has obtained "deleted WhatsApp messages" after forensic examination of her phone.
The deleted messages, they said, allegedly indicate dealings in banned drugs and chats about the procurement and consumption of these drugs that includes cannabis.
Rhea has been questioned by the ED about these suspect drug deal messages deleted from her phone and her statement on these allegations has been recorded by it under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), officials said.
It is understood that the "deleted WhatsApp messages" pertain to Rhea purportedly talking to her friends and some of Rajput's domestic helpers about certain banned narcotics.
The NCB, they said, will probe the possible "source, trade, consumption and handling" of these banned drugs and their possible links to Rajput as well as his death, they said.
Rhea's lawyer Satish Manehsinde had vehemently denied the drug link allegations made against the 28-year-old actor on Tuesday.
"Rhea has never consumed drugs in her life ever. She is ready for a blood test," Maneshinde had said.
The actor is the prime accused in this case and has stated in her petition before the Supreme Court that she was in a live-in relationship with Rajput.
The ED had shared these alleged narcotics related chats with the CBI too that is probing Rajput's death.
Posted By: Abhinav Gupta