Rhea Chakraborty no longer requires travelling abroad: CBI to Bombay HC

Chakraborty, in her plea, sought a temporary suspension of the LOC from December 27 to January 2 in order to attend a brand function in Dubai. She claimed that she had a letter from the pet food company proving her association with it

MUMBAI: Actor Rhea Chakraborty is no longer the brand ambassador of Drools Pets Pvt. Ltd. and therefore she doesn’t require a suspension of lookout circular (LOC) notice to travel abroad, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) told the Bombay high court (HC) on Wednesday.

MUMBAI, INDIA - NOVEMBER 29, 2017 : Rhea Chakraborty was spotted at an eatery in Khar (W) on Wednesday November 29, 2017 in Mumbai, India. (Freelance photo by Yogen Shah) (Yogen Shah)

The central agency was responding to a petition filed by Chakraborty for suspension of the LOC issued against her as part of its investigation into the death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput.

Chakraborty, in her plea, sought a temporary suspension of the LOC from December 27 to January 2 in order to attend a brand function in Dubai. She claimed that she had a letter from the pet food company proving her association with it.

CBI’s counsel advocate, Shriram Shirsat, however, informed a bench of justice AS Gadkari and justice SC Chandak that the agency was still verifying her claims. On this, advocate Abhinav Chandrachud, who represented the actress, requested that the verification be undertaken by the end of the week as Chakraborty has to travel the next week.

The court, however, refused the request, as verification could take some time. It further allowed her to approach the vacation bench on December 26, as she has to travel by December 27.

The CBI is currently investigating the purported role of Rhea Chakraborty in the death of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput. The Chhichhore actor was found dead in his Bandra apartment on June 14, 2020.

She was implicated in the case after Rajput’s father filed a complaint with the Patna police. The case was later transferred to the CBI on an order of the Supreme Court.

Pursuant to the investigation, the CBI issued LOCs against Rhea as well as her brother Showik Chakraborty in August 2020, which prevented them from travelling abroad. Showik’s LOC was briefly suspended in September, which enabled him to travel abroad.

Both Rhea and Showik were also arrested by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) for allegedly procuring or paying for drugs for the consumption of the late actor.