Wednesday, Nov 06, 2024 | Last Update : 04:53 AM IST
In what spells more trouble for Rhea Chakraborty, girlfriend of late Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput, the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) on Wednesday registered an NDPS case against her and two others on the basis of an ED request to probe the drug angle in the death case.
The move comes a day after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) wrote to the NCB to look into the drug angle in the case.
NCB chief Rakesh Asthana told IANS: "We have filed a case on the basis of the letter from the ED."
Asthana said that the agency will soon conduct an inquiry and question the persons concerned.
The officer said that the ED probe into the financial aspects of the death case had allegedly found an angle of drug supply to Rhea.
Another senior NCB official said that Rhea and two others have been booked under Sections 20 (b), 28 and 29 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, which makes possession and peddling of drugs a crime.
The ED wrote to the NCB on Tuesday evening after it got some leads related to alleged use of drugs in the chat records of Rhea and others.
The ED on Wednesday summoned Jaya Saha, the talent manager of Rhea, for questioning after it came to light that the actor had shared a few messages related to drugs with her.
However, the ED remained tight-lipped on the kind of drugs provided to Sushant and Rhea.
Meanwhile, Rhea's lawyer Satish Maneshinde on Tuesday night said in a statement: "Rhea has never consumed drugs in her life ever. She's ready for a blood test any time."
The ED registered a case of money laundering on July 31 on the basis of a Bihar Police FIR filed by Sushant's father KK Singh who alleged transactions of Rs 15 crore with some bank accounts with which Sushant had no connection.
The ED has already recorded the statement of Rhea, her father Indrajit, brother Showik, Shruti Modi, Samuel Miranda, Siddharth Pithani, personal staff, accountant Rajat Mewati, Sushant's Chartered Accountant Sandeep Sridhar, and Rhea's CA Ritesh Shah.
The ED has also recorded the statement of Sushant's father and sisters Priyanka and Meetu.
Mumbai: Bollywood actor Rhea Chakraborty accompanied by her brother Showik arrives to appear before the Enforcement Directorate for questioning in a money laundering probe vis-a-vis the Sushant Singh Rajput case, in Mumbai on Aug 7, 2020. (Photo: IANS)