Chief Minister of Maharashtra steps in:

Shiv Sena is the ruling party in Maharashtra in alliance with Congress and NCP. It owns a news paper cum website called Saamna. Today Sanjay Raut, it’s editor has written a long editorial opposing CBI investigation in the case of death of Sushant Singh Rajput. This article can be accessed here but it is in Marathi. If you know Sanskrit you may be able to read it. But here is an extract from that article translated with the help of google:

Sushant Singh Rajput seems to have committed suicide. There is no basis for what is often said to be murder. The propaganda that the gutter letters and news channels wanting to burn honey on a hot tawa was completely false. Maharashtra has a government under the leadership of Uddhav Thackeray. They used to do it anyway. Opposition groups called for the beleagured PM to resign, but he refused to give up. What the head of that news channel did, ‘gossiping!’ Arnab Goswami is the head of ‘Republic’ news channel. They refer to political leaders, chief ministers in plain language, use defamatory language, make threats. This is what he did in the case of Sonia Gandhi and now people have seen Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray in a single language, challenging him. Seeing all this, Shri. Sharad Pawar called me and said, “Uddhav Thackeray is being mentioned in a single language on a news channel. This is not correct. He is the Chief Minister of Maharashtra. The Chief Minister is not just an individual, he is an institution, “he said. Finally, he asked, “So what does the government do?” Pawar’s opinion is that of an experienced leader. This picture of journalism is not good. A news channel hurled insults at the Chief Minister of Maharashtra and it is tolerated. That news channel is supported by political parties in Maharashtra. Sushant Singh’s pretext and the main conspiracy to discredit the government on that occasion. It continues.”

The article is 1705 words long. It has allegations against a journalist while the writer himself is a journalist? However I will leave that for Arnab to defend. For the benefit of readers, every unnatural death is presumed murder and is subject to magisterial enquiry. By now Police should have closed the inquest awaiting report of Magistrate. Why it is playing on both sides?

The editorial has following reasons to dispute the investigation by CBI:

1. Investigation by CBI is interference in the independence of State;
2. This is a suicide and not killing;
3. Mumbai police is very competent to investigate as it has investigated the matters like 26/11 terror attacks;
4. Investigation by CBI discredit the State Government;
5. Investigation by CBI will discredit Uddhav Thakrey the Chief Minister.
6. Investigation by CBI is ordered with an eye on Bihar election.
7. Bihar Government has no jurisdiction over the investigation.

Independence of State:

State within the federation of India is different from other federations. India is a union of states and not confederation of States. State is just an administrative division. Maharashtra or just Mumbai could be a union territory tomorrow like Jammu and Kashmir. Sanjay should take some lessons in law especially constitution law.

Suicide vs. Killing.

Sanjay the Sherlock must resist temptation. He looks like an idiot by pronouncing a judgment over a subject which is not even being investigated by Mumbai Police. Mumbai police has not registered any crime report called FIR u/s. 154 of Cr.P.C. It is conducting an inquest called preliminary enquiry which is not investigation. A preliminary enquiry is conducted to verify facts. It is not an investigation into commission of crime. Sanjay Raut should read my book on Criminal Law here to understand this distinction and enlighten his readers better.  Since Mumbai police is not investigating any crime, it’s competence is irrelevant. Even though I have doubt about it. Read here about the competence of Police. Police in India works on the network of informers not forensics which is a separate department with limited powers under Cr.P.C. In case of Mumbai Police, it’s incompetence rather sabotage is too apparent. Does Sanjay know that home department has issued guidelines or SOP for suicide like killings which have not been followed at all?

Discrediting the State Government.

It is amazing that Sanjay is not looking at the number of infections in Maharashtra. The State Government is discredited on that itself. How can a murder discredit a Government or a Chief Minister unless Sanjay is making a peshbandi in advance, knowing that there is some personal involvement of Chief Minister or his son as alleged all over social media. Sanjay committed a mistake by dragging the name of Thakrey. Now there is a greater reason to suspect that some Thakrey is involved in these murders.

Bihar Angle:

Sanjay does not understand how the law works. Perhaps he knows it but just doing his job. There are always elections around in India. There are elections or sub-elections or municipal elections due at one place or the other. This is an argument of desperation. The argument of Jurisdiction is more reasonable but baseless. In fact the police official who used the word ‘cause of action’ on national TV surprised me. It is a word from civil law jurisprudence which has no place in criminal law.

In Criminal law every place where there was some part of transaction, police has jurisdiction. Read more about that in my book above. Actually what surprise me is that Panchkula or where ever Sushant visited in February, has not registered a case and referred to CBI. May be brother in law of Sushant was not ready to face barrage of allegations against him as Saamna is doing against all the people.

Personally I am very sad. There are other allegations which if relevant, has to be considered by Court not by people or media. While denying the right of Arnab to question Sanjay Raut assumes the right to judge people, dead as well as alive and worse the nature of their relationships. Nobody should be permitted to do that. May be family will sue Sanjay and Saamna for defamation and infringement of privacy, if adviced.
It is now apparent that it is not the Mumbai Police or the Government but the Thakrey family is hiding something because their spokesman, that is what Sanjay Raut is, has come out and called a death as Suicide when he himself is not sure. (Read the words in bold in the above extract.)

This seems to be the perfect case for reference to CBI and if the Mumbai Police persisted more, it will have a law laid down for future as well, from Supreme Court on 11th August when case comes up for hearing.
Added on 12 September:

Karjat Farm House of Thakrey:

It appears that CBI is going to investigate the Farm House (of Thakrey?) at Karjat, Mumbai. It appears that it is not just Sushant and Disha who are dead there are many other persons missing and dead. On the night of death of Disha, a party was allegedly arranged in a Karjat Farm House. It is undeniable that Thakrey too own a farm house in the area of Karjat.
Four days ago a reporter of Republic TV who was snooping around this farm house was arrested and on inflated charges still being kept in custody of police. There could be some connection of the party at Farm House to aforesaid deaths.
The question remains, even though Aditya Thakrey has denied any connection but this Farm House connection again points finger at his family if not him alone.