In a significant development, the Central Government has decided not to challenge the bail granted to Bollywood actress Rhea Chakraborty in the case registered against her under the Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (NDPS Act). The decision was communicated to the Supreme Court on Tuesday.
Additional Solicitor General SV Raju, representing the Central Government, informed a bench of Justices AS Bopanna and MM Sundresh that while the government will not contest the grant of bail, it reserves the right to challenge the Bombay High Court’s interpretation of Section 27A of the NDPS Act at a later stage. This section pertains to the punishment for financing illicit traffic and harbouring offenders, which can lead to a maximum jail term of 20 years.
The ASG stated.
“We are not challenging the grant of bail but on the interpretation of section, please keep it open for consideration. Let the order not a precedent also,”
The Supreme Court accepted the government’s position and disposed of the appeal, clarifying that the Bombay High Court order would not be treated as a precedent. The Court ordered;
“Union government submits bail is not being challenged. However, the question of law kept open for consideration at an appropriate time,”
Rhea Chakraborty, along with others including her brother Showik Chakraborty, Abdel Basit Parihar, Samuel Miranda, and Dipesh Sawant, are accused of facilitating the procurement of drugs for the late actor Sushant Singh Rajput, who was Chakraborty’s boyfriend at the time of his death.
The Bombay High Court had granted bail to Chakraborty, Sawant, and Miranda in October 2020, but rejected the bail pleas of Abdul Parihar and Showik Chakraborty. Chakraborty’s bail was granted subject to certain conditions, including the furnishing of a PR Bond of Rs. 1 lakh and a restriction on leaving the country.
The Central Government’s decision not to challenge Chakraborty’s bail comes more than five months after it approached the Supreme Court in appeal against the Bombay High Court’s order.