Sooraj Pancholi acquitted of abetment charges in Jiah Khan death case

Sooraj Pancholi has been acquitted in Jiah Khan death case. The actor had been accused of abetment to her suicide. Sooraj was found not guilty due to lack of evidence.

The verdict comes a decade after the actress’ demise. She was found hanging in her Mumbai home on June 3, 2013 at the age of 25.

Sooraj’s mother Zarina Wahab accompanied him to the hearing. Special Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) court judge AS Sayyed heard both sides and reserved his verdict on the case. He declared, “Due to paucity of evidence, Sooraj Pancholi is acquitted.”

If convicted, Sooraj would have faced up to 10 years in prison. He was arrested in the case in June 2013 and was released in July 2013 on bail.

Jiah Khan’s mother Rabia Khan had claimed that she was killed and her then-boyfriend Sooraj had abetted her death. She had filed a petition with Bombay High Court that her daughter Jiah Khan did not die of suicide but was instead murdered. The HC dismissed her petition and ordered a fresh investigation in the case.

CBI had investigated the case previously, when they found notes which matched Jiah Khan’s handwriting. In the six-page letters, there was a mention of Jiah Khan's ‘intimate relationship, physical abuse, and mental and physical torture’ allegedly at the hands of Sooraj Pancholi which led her to die by suicide, the central agency said.

On April 12, 2023, Sooraj had claimed that he has been falsely accused. Claiming he broke down upon hearing about Jiah's death, Sooraj said, “I had lost the most important person of my life and the woman whom I truly loved.”

Jiah Khan is best remembered for playing the lead in Nishabd, co-starring Amitabh Bachchan, where she was also the playback singer with the superstar. The actress was also a part of Ghajini and Housefull after the role. Back in 1998, Jiah had also played the role of younger Manisha in Shah Rukh Khan’s Dil Se..