Bollywood: Sooraj Pancholi’s trial in Jiah Khan suicide case moved to CBI court

Bollywood actor Sooraj Pancholi’s court case will be transferred to a special CBI court after being in the Sessions Court for a long time.

Pancholi is accused of abetting the suicide of his late girlfriend, actress Jiah Khan, who was found dead in June 2013.

“CBI court will now hear the case pending for 8 yrs. The sessions court, which was conducting a trial against her boyfriend actor Suraj Pancholi on charges of alleged abetment, has said that the trial should be transferred to a spl CBI court,” news agency ANI tweeted.

Times of India quoted Pancholi’s lawyer, Advocate Prashant Patil, as saying: “The order granted by the Hon’ble Sessions Court to transfer the said case to Special CBI Court is a welcome move for my client, Sooraj Pancholi. We have been moving applications since the beginning of the trial to expedite the case and decide the matter on its merits within six months. Our applications were allowed. Even then, the trial proceedings were delayed. We then moved a Writ Petition before the Hon’ble Bombay High Court for expediting the trial and concluding it within six months.”

Pancholi is the son of Bollywood actor-couple Aditya Pancholi and Zarina Wahab.

In a charge sheet, the CBI said the body of Khan was found hanging at her residence in Andheri by her mother Rabiya Khan.

The CBI said Pancholi had concealed certain facts and provided fabricated information during his interrogation.

The actor has denied any involvement in Khan’s death.