Mumbai: Justifying its FIR registered against the sisters of actor Sushant Singh Rajput, Mumbai Police on Monday told the Bombay High Court that they have only discharged their "statutory duty" without any mala fide on their part. The city police further said it was now the duty of the CBI to probe the FIR registered on a complaint of actor Rhea Chakraborty, especially on the "possibility of Sushant's mental health deterioration and the subsequent suicide".
This came in an affidavit filed by Bandra Police before a bench of Justices Sambhaji Shinde and Makarand Karnik, which is presently hearing writ petitions filed by Meetu and Priyanka Singh - Sushant's sisters, seeking to quash the FIR registered against them by the Bandra police.
Police have booked the duo along with a Delhi-based doctor, Tarun Kumar of Ram Manohar Lohia hospital, for allegedly administering a banned psychotropic substance to the late actor by submitting a forged prescription.
Notably, the CBI had last month told the bench that the FIR needed to be quashed since it was unwarranted and unjustifiable.
"No mala fide can be attributed to us for having discharged our statutory duty and complying with the orders of the Supreme Court. The present FIR is significant as it seeks probe into the possibility of deterioration of his mental health and eventual suicide pursuant to the conspiracy," police said in their affidavit
Refuting the allegations, Mumbai Police, through Nikhil Kapse, senior police inspector, Bandra police station, stated that they hadn't "connived" with Rhea, who is a prime accused in another FIR registered by the CBI for abetting Sushant's suicide.
"The allegation that Mumbai Police in connivance with Rhea or acting with ulterior motives or mala fides or in a mechanical manner without applying our mind or with vendetta or vindictive or hasty proceedings or taking divergent stands, are baseless and vehemently denied. We deny that we are trying to damage the reputation of the two sisters," the affidavit reads.
The affidavit further stated that Mumbai Police has no intent to influence or disturb the probe by the CBI.
"Neither is there any merit in the allegation that our FIR was to derail or influence the probe being conducted by the CBI nor is there any justifiable reason to seek protection from Mumbai Police," the city force said.
"The present FIR is registered on the basis of the complaint filed by Rhea disclosing commission of cognizance offences under the IPC and also the NDPS," the police said, adding, "The FIR is also not in violation of the fundamental rights of these applicants."
The city police further said they could not be accused of any mala fide since they were only doing their duty.
