Jiah Khan suicide case final verdict today; actor Sooraj Pancholi & family 'anxious'

Nearly a decade after then upcoming actor Jiah Khan was found dead by suicide in her Juhu home, a special CBI court is today likely to pronounce its verdict on whether actor Sooraj Pancholi - her partner then, had abetted the act of the 25-year-old.

Jiah had died by suicide on June 3, 2013. Sooraj, then 22, was charged under Sec 306 of the Indian Penal Code (abetment of suicide) and arrested a week after the unfortunate incident.

The case saw many a controversy with Jiah’s mother Rabia Khan alleging that it was not a case of suicide, but a murder. She had approached the Bombay High Court with a writ petition too in this regard and had also sought transfer of the case to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). 

The Juhu police station, that had probed the case before it was taken over by the CBI, had ruled out murder and stuck to the charge of suicide abetment. The case was later transferred to the CBI by the HC in July 2014. At the end of the year, the CBI too, maintained the charge of abetment contrary to the mother’s allegations. The mother had then made a plea before the trial court seeking that further investigation on certain aspects be conducted, 9zincluding forensic probe of mobile phones. The trial court has rejected the plea.

In March, 2019, the trial in the case began with the deposition of a police procedure-related witness. The CBI examined 21 witnesses during the trial and closed the case. Recently, in a final statement given by an accused to court, as per procedure, Sooraj, on questions asked by the special court, refuted being responsible for the death of Jiah. Last week, the CBI as well as Sooraj's lawyers made their final arguments and the court reserved the case for verdict. 

According to Bar and Bench, special judge AS Sayyad had completed hearing the final arguments on the case on April 20 following which he reserved the verdict. It will be announced on Friday.

A news report states that a member of the Pancholi family has revealed that everyone including Sooraj Pancholi is ‘anxious’ but also ‘positive’ about the verdict.

Sooraj Pancholi to court: Not responsible for Jiah Khan's death

Earlier this month, Sooraj denied being responsible for his late partner Jiah Khan’s suicide and claimed that their relationship was good throughout the time they were together.

The actor answered 558 questions that a special court had put to him in connection with Jiah’s suicide, which he is accused of abetting.

Jiah Khan's death

Jiah was found hanging in her room on June 3, 2013, at her Mumbai residence by her mother, Rabiya Khan. The actress left behind a suicide note blaming Sooraj Pancholi for the extreme step.

Jiah’s mother Rabiya Khan has repeatedly claimed that her daughter was murdered by Pancholi. However, Sooraj was released on bail.

Following his bail, Jiah’s mother moved to the Bombay High Court and sought a transfer of the probe to the CBI.