Bombay HC suspends LOC against Rhea Chakraborty issued by CBI allowing her to travel to Dubai for a week

On December 26, 2023, the vacation bench of the Bombay High Court suspended a LOC (Look-Out Circular) against actress Rhea Chakraborty issued by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). It also allowed her to travel to Dubai for a week to attend a promotional event of the pet food company Drools Pvt. Ltd. CBI was investigating actress Rhea Chakraborty in the death case of Sushant Singh Rajput. The CBI opposed the HC's decision to grant the actress any sought of relief stating that she was no longer the brand ambassador of the company.

The matter was heard by a two-judge bench of the Bombay HC comprising Justice Kamal Khata and Justice Jitendra Jain. While suspending LOC, the bench highlighted Rhea Chakraborty’s status as an actor and said, “She is not an industrialist. She is an actor who has her base here and is participating in a programme called Roadies. She is not a businessman, who has some ill-gotten gains. She has to come back and earn her bread and butter here.”

During the court proceedings, Advocate Shreeram Shirsat, who appeared for the CBI, submitted that “This is a solicited invite, and it has to be juxtaposed with the investigation that is going on.” He added that the contract between the company and the actress only mentioned work in Mumbai, “The email that has been received is solicited as the company does not talk about a fresh contract, and the last contract talks about deliverables in Mumbai. The CBI will be investigating at whose behest the email was sought.”

After hearing the arguments, the bench ordered to suspend LOC against the actress allowing her to travel to Dubai for a week to attend a promotional event.