Bombay High Court Transfers Disha Salian Death Probe to CBI
The Bombay High Court on Wednesday transferred the probe into the death of Disha Salian, who died after falling from a residential building in Malad in June 2020, to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
A bench headed by Justice Sarang Kotwal ordered the transfer while hearing a plea filed by Disha’s father, Satish Salian. In the petition, argued by advocate Nilesh Ojha, Salian sought an independent investigation into his daughter's death, alleging that she was assaulted and killed and stating that the local police had failed to register his complaint.
The High Court directed the senior CBI officer in charge of the agency's Mumbai bureau to appoint an investigating officer. The appointed officer has been instructed to record the statement of the petitioner and register a First Information Report (FIR).
The bench stated that the investigating officer must conduct a probe into all aspects surrounding the circumstances under which the petitioner’s daughter lost her life. It clarified that nobody shall be treated as an accused unless the investigating officer finds sufficient grounds to raise reasonable suspicion based on evidence collected during the inquiry.
Officers of the Malwani Police Station in Mumbai were directed by the court to hand over all necessary case papers and articles to the CBI investigating officer.
The bench noted that if an offence is established, an appropriate report must be submitted before the competent court. If the CBI investigation reveals that no offence is made out, an appropriate summary report must be filed, after which the petitioner will retain the right to file a protest petition challenging that report. Following these directions, the High Court disposed of the petition.
Disha Salian, who worked as a manager and had represented late actor Sushant Singh Rajput, died on June 8, 2020, after falling from the 14th floor of a residential building in Malad. The Mumbai Police had initially registered an Accidental Death Report (ADR) and concluded after an inquiry that she died by suicide.
The State government maintained in court that inquiries indicated suicide with no foul play and questioned the delay of over five years in filing the plea. However, the bench observed that the parents may not have recovered from the shock of losing their daughter and noted that authorities had themselves reopened the inquiry after three to four years.
