SC objects to NCB's plea against Bombay HC observations in Rhea Chakraborty's bail

The Supreme Court on Thursday took objections to the Narcotics Control Bureau filing a petition against 'prima facie' observations by the Bombay High Court without challenging the bail granted to Bollywood actor Rhea Chakraborty on October 7.

"We find it very difficult to understand. You cannot file a petition challenging observations. You can only challenge the order. The observations are prima facie," a bench presided over by Chief Justice S A Bobde told Solicitor General Tushar Mehta.

The court's remarks came after Mehta said the NCB did not challenge the bail but only observations made by the High Court, which made the NDPS Act unworkable.

On this, Mehta agreed to amend the petition, to include a challenge to the bail order. He requested the court to take up the matter next week.

The court posted the matter for consideration on Monday.

Read more: NCB moves SC against Bombay HC order granting bail to actress Rhea Chakraborty in drugs case

The Bombay High Court had on October 7, 2020, granted bail to actor Chakraborty who had been arrested by the NCB on September 8, in connection with an alleged drugs-related case linked to the death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput on June 14.

Rhea’s counsel had contended that the NCB lacked jurisdiction to probe the matter in view of the Supreme Court order of August 19, 2020 directing to hand over all investigations in the Sushant case to the CBI. The offences under which the accused were nabbed by the NCB were bailable and the charges under the NDPS Act Section 217A against the accused did not have supporting evidence.

Rhea and her brother Showik Chakraborty and three others -- Abdel Basit Parihar, Samuel Miranda and Dipesh Sawant -- were accused of having facilitated the procurement of drugs for consumption by late actor Sushant Singh Rajput.