September 18: The political battle over the 2020 death of celebrity manager Disha Salian has intensified after the Central Bureau of Investigation registered an FIR following a directive from the Bombay High Court, with Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut alleging that the development is being used to target and tarnish the image of the Thackeray family.
Raut came out in strong defence of party colleague Aaditya Thackeray, who has denied ever knowing or meeting Salian and has described attempts to link him to the case as politically motivated. Raut said the Thackerays were prepared to face the investigation and would fight the allegations. He also asserted that the family continued to enjoy public trust.
The CBI registered the case after the Bombay High Court, on September 2, directed the agency to appoint an investigating officer, record the statement of Salian’s father, Satish Salian, and investigate all circumstances surrounding her death. The court also made clear that no individual should be treated as an accused unless sufficient material emerged during the investigation.
The distinction is significant: the registration of an FIR does not by itself establish guilt, and the investigation is still at an early stage. The CBI has begun examining the circumstances surrounding Salian’s death, which occurred on June 8, 2020, after she fell from a residential building in Mumbai.
Aaditya Thackeray rejects allegations
Aaditya Thackeray has maintained that he had no acquaintance with Salian and accused unnamed political opponents of repeatedly attempting to associate his name with the case despite, according to him, there being no evidence connecting him to her death. He has called the campaign an attempt at character assassination and urged that the fresh investigation proceed without political interference.
The controversy has now widened beyond the investigation itself. On September 17, Salian’s father issued a ₹500-crore defamation notice to Aaditya Thackeray, disputing his statements about the renewed probe and the allegations surrounding the case.
Raut: “We are ready to fight”
Raut’s position is that the renewed CBI proceedings are being turned into a political weapon against the Thackeray family. He said Aaditya Thackeray was not alone and that the party would stand behind him.
The investigation, however, remains ongoing. Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has also cautioned against speculation, saying the CBI should now be allowed to conduct its investigation and that it would not be appropriate to prejudge its findings.
For now, the case presents two sharply different narratives: Salian’s family is seeking a fresh investigation into what it considers unresolved questions surrounding her death, while Thackeray and his political allies argue that his name is being dragged into the matter for political purposes. The CBI investigation will determine what evidence, if any, supports the competing claims.
Human beings, naturally, have managed to turn an investigation into a political battlefield before the investigators have even finished investigating. The evidence, rather inconveniently, still gets the final word.
JANPATH NEWS NETWORK (JNN)
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