Bombay High Court orders CBI probe into Disha Salian death case

The Bombay High Court ordered a CBI investigation into the 2020 death of Disha Salian, citing glaring discrepancies in the police probe. The court directed the CBI to register an FIR and said no individual should be treated as an accused without sufficient evidence

Mumbai: The Bombay High Court on Wednesday ordered a CBI probe into the death of Disha Salian, a former manager of late actor Sushant Singh Rajput, and pulled up the city police for not registering an FIR for six years, saying their investigation “raises more questions than answers”.

An investigation cannot continue for an inordinately long time, and a probe by the central agency was necessary in the case, a bench of Justices Sarang Kotwal and Ranjitsinha Raja Bhonsale said.

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The bench criticised the police for treating the case as an accidental death for six years and noted “glaring discrepancies” in the investigation.

Salian’s father had raised suspicions about the circumstances surrounding her death in 2020 and later approached the High Court.

“In the present case, the investigation went on for about six years. The investigation carried out by the police raises more questions than it answers. Therefore, an investigation by the CBI is necessary in this case,” the High Court said.

The court ordered the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to register an FIR and record the statement of the deceased’s father, Satish Salian, but clarified that no person shall be treated as an accused unless sufficient material is gathered against them during the probe.

While Satish Salian sought the registration of an FIR against Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray, the High Court refrained from making any remarks against any individual, noting that it was for the central agency to investigate the case.

In its 44-page judgment, the court said there were too many “glaring discrepancies” in the police investigation, necessitating a “proper and substantive” probe.

“In this case, we are of the opinion that the police had sufficient opportunity to investigate the offence, but they have not registered the FIR and have not carried out the investigation of a cognisable offence,” the court said.

Disha Salian had briefly worked as a manager for actor Sushant Singh Rajput, who was found dead at his residence in Mumbai in June 2020. A CBI probe was also ordered in that case.

Disha Salian died on June 8, 2020, after falling from the 14th floor of a residential building in Mumbai’s Malad area. The city police subsequently registered an Accidental Death Report (ADR).

The High Court on Wednesday directed the Mumbai police to hand over all case papers related to Disha Salian’s death to the CBI forthwith.

“In case the investigation reveals that no case is made out, then the CBI shall file the appropriate summary report before the court concerned,” the bench said.

Satish Salian would be at liberty to challenge the report, the High Court said.

The court noted that Salian was an “unfortunate” father of a young daughter who lost her life in “tragic circumstances” and that the case required a substantive investigation.

It, however, said it was refraining from referring to the allegations made by Satish Salian against certain individuals.

The court pointed out several lacunae in the police investigation and noted that the spot panchnama was conducted belatedly.

It also raised doubts over the fact that no blood was found at the spot where Disha Salian fell and that there was no bleeding injury to her head.

“If the deceased had fallen on her face from the 12th floor, then it is difficult to accept that there was only one injury on the chin of the body. Not a single facial bone was fractured. We find this difficult to accept,” the High Court said.

The bench directed the CBI to appoint a suitably experienced and senior officer to investigate the case.

“Nobody shall be treated as an accused unless, in the opinion of the investigating officer, there are sufficient grounds to raise reasonable suspicion against him depending on the material collected during the investigation,” the High Court said.

If any offence is made out, an appropriate report shall be filed before the competent court, it added.

After conducting an inquiry, the police had claimed that Disha Salian’s death was a case of suicide. Her father, however, filed a petition in the High Court last year alleging that his daughter had been gang-raped and murdered.

Satish Salian’s advocate, Nilesh Ojha, raised doubts about the police investigation.

Salian sought a CBI probe into his daughter’s death and the registration of an FIR against Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA Aaditya Thackeray, the son of former Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray.

In his plea, he claimed that his daughter was found dead under mysterious circumstances in June 2020. He alleged that she was raped and murdered and that there was subsequently a politically orchestrated cover-up to protect certain influential persons.

Earlier, Aaditya Thackeray had also filed an application in the High Court seeking to intervene in the plea filed by Satish Salian and urged the court to grant him a hearing before passing any order.

Thackeray, in his application, said the petition filed by Satish Salian was false, frivolous and motivated.