A significant legal development has emerged in the Sushant Singh Rajput case, with a special court in Mumbai allowing the defreezing of bank accounts belonging to actor Rhea Chakraborty and her family. The decision brings fresh attention to a case that continues to remain in public focus years after the original investigation began.
Court Grants Relief In Bank Account Freeze Case
On Saturday, the Mumbai court permitted the release of bank accounts held by Rhea Chakraborty, her brother Showik Chakraborty, and their mother Sandhya Chakraborty.
These accounts had been frozen by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in 2020 during its investigation linked to the death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput. While some accounts were already defrozen in 2021, the family had recently approached the court seeking release of additional accounts held with ICICI Bank, Axis Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank.
The plea, filed through advocates Ayaz Khan and Zehra Charania, primarily concerned joint accounts operated by family members.
Defence Argues NDPS Act Procedure Not Followed
The applicants argued that the NCB had not complied with Section 68F of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act. They maintained that this made the continued freezing of accounts unlawful.
The provision requires that any seizure or freezing of assets linked to alleged drug activity must be confirmed by a competent authority within a fixed timeframe. According to the defence, this mandatory step was not followed in the present case.
Advocate Ayaz Khan, representing Rhea and her mother, submitted that the required confirmation procedure was not carried out for the accounts in question.
NCB Opposes The Plea
Opposing the application, Additional Public Prosecutor Geeta Nayyar argued that statements recorded during the investigation indicated Rhea Chakraborty’s alleged links with a drug network and contact with drug peddlers. On this basis, the NCB justified the freezing of the accounts.
Court Observes Legal Lapse
Special judge UC Deshmukh mentioned that the procedural requirements under the NDPS Act had not been followed. The court highlighted that any freezing order must be confirmed within 30 days to remain valid.
In its order, the court stated, "The NCB does not deny that there is no compliance of Sub-section (2) of Section 68F of the Act. There is no order as contemplated to be passed under such provisions of Act. Therefore, in view of the observations of the Hon'ble High Court in Jatinder (supra) and provisions of Section 68F of the Act, the application is liable to be allowed."
With this observation, the court allowed the defreezing of the bank accounts. As of now, neither Rhea Chakraborty nor her family has issued an official statement.