HC permits Sooraj to intervene in petition by Jiah's mother against CBI chargesheet

Mumbai: The Bombay High Court on Wednesday permitted actor Sooraj Pancholi, accused of abetting suicide of his actress girlfriend Jiah Khan, to intervene in the petition filed by Jiah's mother Rabia Khan against CBI's chargesheet terming the death as suicide.

Rabia petitioned the High Court against Central Bureau of Investigation's report categorising Jiah's death on June 3, 2013 as suicidal and not homicidal.

The petition seeks formation of a Special Investigating Team and monitoring of the investigation by high court. The petition pointed out various anomalies in the chargesheet filed by the CBI in December last year. The high court in February this year, while hearing the petition, stayed the trial against Sooraj.

Sooraj last month filed an intervention application seeking a stay on the trial to be vacated, saying he has every right to face a 'free, fair and expeditious trial'. Sooraj in his application claimed that the petitioner (Rabia) has concealed vital information pertaining to Jiah's disturbed childhood and also the fact that she (Jiah) had attempted to kill herself when she was young.

A division bench of Justices RV More and Shalini Phansalkar Joshi on Wednesday allowed the intervention application and posted the matter for hearing on January 14.

Sooraj was arrested for abetting Jiah's suicide on June 10, 2013 but released on July 2 after the HC granted him bail.

The case was transferred to CBI by HC in July 2014 on Rabia's petition that the police was not investigating it properly.