Sushant Singh Rajput, a 34 year old Indian Actor, passed away on June 14,2020. It is presumed that it was a Suicide by him. Prima Facie, anybody could make out that there were too many discrepencies for the same to be a Suicide.
What is trial by Media ?
This is a new phase used in the recent years. A lot of times it happens that due to certain factors, the law and order system and the judiciary is unable to decide on certain cases. The Media, the fourth pillar of democracy, then conducts an Investigative Journalism, where it not only digs out relevant information with respect to a particular case but also analysis it and presents it to the citizens at large. The Constitution of India vide Article 19 (1), has given the freedom of expression to every Indian. his article is one of the important facilitator for the widespread media engagement in democracy.
Though a lot of times, Media just encourages sensationalism for the sake of TRP but there are cases like Jessical Lal Murder Case, where Media Trial ensured that Justice was delivered.
In the past, there have been a lot of mysterious deaths of the rich and famous, which have remained still unsolved. Divya Bharati, SriDevi, Sunanda Pushkar and now Sushant Singh, are a few famous celebrities, who passed away suddenly, who’s cause of death is still mysterious. Prima Facie, it was made to look like it was a case of suicide due to depression and blaming nepotism in the film industry. His Girlfriend Riya, has been constantly giving inconsistent statements and a lot of worms have been spilled out of can.
Twitteratis have been constantly demanding CBI Investigation for Sushant. Even at the first glance of the Dead Body video that was being circulated, my gut feeling said that it is not a suicide but a murder. As a lawyer, our intutions are trained in a bit to identify the circumstances and people beyond the obivious.
Red Flag 1 – Seeded Conversation
I have been a blogger for quiet some time and have also done a few activities for the brand. During the product launch for a brand or any activity for the brand, we are told to seed a conversation. Generally, when a famous personality passes away, the conversation is mainly around how the certain person would be missed, how their work was great, which was their favourite work. For Example:- When SriDevi passed away, the entire day the news channels spoke about her different roles, her co-star spoke about how great artist she was, every one posted about their favourite Sridevi roles etc. Etc. Even though she died mysteriously, there conspiracy theories arose a few days later.
But as soon as SSR passed away, one of the hashtags, that was trending was about Mental Health. The awareness of Mental Health in India is very less, we barely talk about the same. But that day, there were so many post and articles about Mental Health and Men’s Mental Health going on almost everywhere, that it was obivious that it was a seeded conversation.
New Delhi, INDIA: An Indian woman holds a banner during a protest in New Delhi, 23 July 2006, organised to petition the President of India to order a retrial in the Priyadarshini Mattoo murder case. A court had acquitted Santosh Kumar Singh, a law student in the University of Delhi and the son of a senior officer of the Indian Police Service, of the charge of rape and murder of Priyadarshini Mattoo, a third-year law student, on 23 January 1996. Mattoo was found strangled to death in the bedroom of her South Delhi apartment with 19 injuries. AFP PHOTO/Manpreet ROMANA (Photo credit should read MANPREET ROMANA/AFP via Getty Images) 
Red Flag 2 Viral Video of the Dead Body
When your near one has committed Suicide, you obiviously do not take video of the dead body. No matter, we how hard we try to convince ourself that our loved one is no more, our first intution is to call a doctor and our near and dear ones soon. Because the natural emotion a person feels is fear and helplessness because most of the people are blank. No matter we are not medical professionals, but we try every procedure that we have heard or read to wake up that person.
But strangely here, someone has taken a video of the person, who has allegedly committed suicide and worst it has also been leaked to the media channels and is available all over the internet. Only an insensitive person, who wanted to warn or send out a message to the world at large will dare to do such an insensitive act.
Red Flag 3 – Nepotism Debate
Yes, it is a fact, that Nepotism is a part and parcel of our lives. It has been and will be always a part of our society. Though I was not a fan of SSR, not someone who followed him or his work regularly (I just knew he had got DCE Rank 7 and had watched M.S,Dhoni in which I loved him), I atleast felt that someone, who had done a biopic in this early stage of his career, was not someone, who would have definitely committed Suicide due to Nepotism. Every actor tries his best to get act in a Biopic at one stage in their career and he had already done that. He was already on top in his own way. He would have been in the industry for some 10-12 years, and if something like nepotism was bothering him, he would have not even survived for more than 2 years and packed his bags and left.
The whole Nepotism debate seemed more like a threat to destroy the Bollywood industry. Yes, there are some Bollywood Mafia’s but that presently, that was connected to this murder in a different way.
Red Flag 4 Disha Salian Murder
She was his former Manager and was murdered on 9th June,2020. I found it wierd that a person during lockdown period would come all the way from Dadar to Malad to Commit Suicide. Subsequently, post Sushant’s death, they said that it was an accidental death as she was drunk and jumped off from the 14th floor of the high rise in Malad (West). Some how, facts do not match here. Disha being from a simple family, her family did not have much reach and her family was shocked like how any family would be.
But trust me howmuch ever I know, a normal person, no matter how depressed he or she is, would not travel to this distance only to commit suicide. Strangely, her file also gets deleted from the Electronic Records of the Malvani Police Station !!!. A bit too strange and untrue to believe.
I do not wish to comment on the people, who may be involved in the same, because Twitter and Quora, has been posting a lot of conspiracy theories. Some may be true but some may be just rumours. There are too many inconsistencies in this case. Things are obivious yet things are not clear. May be the names that are involved are way too obivious.
I hope just like Jessical Lal, Priyadarshini Mattoo and Nirbhaya (Jyothi Singh), Sushant and Disha also get justice. Media did play a major role by conducting Media trial and pressurising the government for the same. But we also do have some unsolved mysteries even today. The reason why this case needs to be solved is because he was an ordinary boy. A middle- class boy, who came with no influence but pure talent and made his dream come true. If he does not get justice, millions of Indians, will loose faith in talent and nepotism will kill productivity pushing back the economy.
There have been previous cases, where IAS Officers to common men have been victims of the atrocities of the Powerful. Unfortunately, there was no media pressure then, because we as common people are more obsessed with bollywood.
If this time, these two individuals do not get justice, probably along with the millions of citizens even the people who are a part of the machinery may also loose faith in the police and judiciary.
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