The Bombay High Court refused to extend the stay on the trial against Sooraj Pancholi
The High Court yesterday refused to further stay the trial of Jiah Khan’s suicide case, which will be heard in Sessions court on Thursday.
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The HC, while hearing a plea filed by Jiah Khan’s mother Rabia Khan demanding that instead of abetment to suicide charge, actor Sooraj Pancholi be charged for murder and Special Investigation Team (SIT) be formed to probe the case afresh, said, “It’s not possible to fulfill all your demands. You demanded transfer of investigations from state police to CBI and it was done. Now, you say CBI investigations are improper and want us to form an SIT. Everything can’t work as per your wish. This has to end somewhere.”
Rabia’s counsel Subhash Jha argued in front of the HC bench, comprising Justices Naresh Patil and A M Badar, that Pancholi had murdered the actress. “All the witnesses’ statements recorded by the state police have been again taken by the CBI. The investigation agency did not make any effort to look at it from the murder angle,” said Jha.
Earlier, the HC bench comprising Justices Ranjit More and V L Achaliya had stayed the trial as Jiah’s mother had pointed out discrepancies in the CBI investigation. But now the HC has lifted the stay.
Hiten Vinegaonkar, who was representing the CBI in court, demanded that the court remove Dinesh Tiwari as the special public prosecutor as he was once Rabia’s lawyer and may be biased.