Jiah Khan suicide case: Don’t want to comment on anything, says Aditya Pancholi

Zee Media Bureau

Mumbai: Actor Aditya Pancholi in an exclusive interview to Zee News said that he will wait for the court’s verdict on the Jiah Khan Suicide case. The actress’s mother, Rabbiya had moved Bombay High Court stating that her daughter did not commit suicide but was murdered. Jiah, who was launched by Ram Gopal Varma opposite Amitabh Bachchan in ‘Nishabd’ was found hanging at her Juhu apartment on June 3. Jiah was in a relationship with Aditya’s son Sooraj. The actress’s mother is determined to prove that her daughter did not commit suicide. However, while talking to Zee News, Aditya said, “I do not want to comment on anything right now as it might affect the case. Let the law take its own course. We know what the truth is and I know my son is innocent. But for the moment it is better to say the least.” The petition filed by Rabbiya alleges that Jiah may have been hanged after being killed. It cites some reasons to support this theory. The petition says that a person who commits suicide would have his or her eyes popping and tongue protruding out, while in the case of Jiah it was not so. Also, in such cases lung or brain haemorrhage is generally noticed, but in this case this was not observed. The petition further says that besides ligature marks that occur in death due to hanging, injury marks were noticed on Jiah`s face and body. An injury was noticed on the right side of her lips and a mark on her left arm suggested as if someone had held her tightly. While police claimed that Jiah had hanged herself with a muslin `dupatta`, forensic expert Dr R N Jerajani opined that the depth of ligature marks in Jiah`s case was difficult to achieve with a soft material. Dr Jerajani has further opined that the ligature marks on Jiah`s neck are not like the ones usually found on the body of a person who hangs self from a ceiling fan. The possibility of strangulation is not ruled out in this case, he said in the forensic report. The petition further said that CCTV camera footage showed that Jiah had entered her house a few minutes before she committed suicide. At that time, she was wearing a track suit but her body was discovered in a night gown. Would a person about to commit suicide change her dress, the petition asks? Moreover, the ceiling fan was located in between two single beds and it was not possible for Jiah to hang herself without a stool and there was no stool in her house. There is a window in Jiah`s room at a low level in the first-floor flat. This window was found open although air-condition machine was on at the time of the incident, the petition said, adding that the window could have been used to gain entry into the room. Jiah’s boyfriend Sooraj Pancholi, who Rabbiya believes is responsible for her death, was arrested on charges of abetting her suicide, but was released on bail after serving 21 days in jail in the month of June. (With PTI inputs)