New Delhi: Nearly 10 years after the death of actor Jiah Khan, a special CBI court in Mumbai acquitted actor Sooraj Pancholi due to "paucity of evidence".

Jiah was found hanging at her Juhu home in Mumbai on June 3, 2013. Based on a six-page letter, purportedly written by her, Mumbai Police arrested Pancholi. While he was booked on charges that he abetted her to suicide, Jiah's mother, Rabia Khan, claimed that her daughter was killed.

Pancholi was arrested in June 2013 and released on bail in July 2013. He is the son of actors Zarina Wahab and Aditya Pancholi. Had been convicted in the case, he could have faced up to 10 years in jail.

Based on a petition filed by Jiah's mother, who alleged foul play in her daughter's death, the Bombay high court had transferred the investigation to the CBI in 2014. The agency then, in 2015, filed a charge sheet that booked Pancholi for abetment to suicide while ruling out murder.

According to Livelaw, the prosecution in the case examined 22 witnesses, and alleged that Jiah had left Pancholi's house on June 3, 2013, morning, when she had allegedly died by suicide. The CBI had noted that Pancholi had hidden facts and fabricated information during questioning. It had also recorded that Pancholi vehemently denied being responsible for Jiah's death.

The probe agency had also noted that Pancholi had aided Jiah in terminating her pregnancy six months before her death, leaving her emotionally disturbed.

Meanwhile, Jiah's mother reiterated that her daughter was killed after the verdict was pronounced on Friday. "The charge of abetment to suicide has gone. But how did my child die? This is a case of murder...will approach the high court," she told the news agency ANI, adding that the cause of Jiah's death "has not yet been determined".

"The verdict is on alleged suicide, but I have always maintained that Jiah was murdered. This, in fact, strengthens my case," she further said.

For his part, Pancholi claimed, in his final statement before the court on April 12, 2023, that he had been booked in a false case and that he was the victim of a false prosecution and persecution.

If you know someone – friend or family member – at risk of suicide, please reach out to them. The Suicide Prevention India Foundation maintains a list of telephone numbers they can call to speak in confidence. Icall, a counselling service run by TISS, has maintained a crowdsourced list of therapists across the country. You could also take them to the nearest hospital.

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