The late actor Sushant Singh Rajput’s flatmate Siddharth Pithani was granted bail by the Bombay High Court on Monday in a drugs case filed by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in 2020 following the actor’s death. Justice Bharati Dangre granted bail on the execution of a Rs. 50,000 PR Bond.
The NCB charged Pithani with, among other things, violating section 27A of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act (funding illicit traffic and harbouring offenders). Pithani petitioned the Supreme Court after his default bail application was denied by the special NDPS court.
Pithani’s counsel contended that section 27A was incorrectly applied because only a little amount of contraband was seized from him.
They also stated that Pithani was arrested based on statements provided by two co-accused – Rajput’s manager Samuel Miranda and cook Dipesh Sawant – and that this evidence was unreliable.
Pithani argued in his appeal that there was no evidence of his involvement in illegal narcotics trafficking. Advait Tamhankar, an advocate, filed the application.
Pithani claimed in his application that there was no evidence against him indicating that he was involved in narcotics trafficking.
However, NCB Special Public Prosecutor Shreeram Shirsat contended that there are recordings and other evidence on his laptop and phone, as well as bank transactions through Sushant Singh Rajput’s accounts that are linked to the purchase of narcotics.
Prior to this, the special court had denied Pithani’s request for regular bail, saying that he was not eligible for release at that time. It had provided him with temporary relief in order for him to attend his wedding in June.
Following the actor’s murder, the NCB launched an investigation into alleged drug connections in the film business, and numerous people, including Sushant Singh Rajput’s girlfriend Rhea Chakraborty, were arrested. The most of the convicts are currently out on bail.