Sridevi's Death: Mumbai Activists Differ On Police's Role
Even as Bollywood diva Sridevi was cremated on Wednesday activists based here were divided over whether her death should be probed by the Mumbai police despite the Dubai police closing the case.
Even
as
Bollywood
diva
Sridevi
was
cremated
on
Wednesday
activists
based
here
were
divided
over
whether
her
death
should
be
probed
by
the
Mumbai
police
despite
the
Dubai
police
closing
the
case.
Sridevi
passed
away
on
Saturday
night
at
a
hotel
room
in
Dubai
where
she,
along
with
the
entire
Kapoor
clan
and
a
host
of
Bollywood
celebrities,
had
gone
for
the
wedding
of
nephew
Mohit
Marwah.
Dubai
Public
Prosecutor's
Office
put
an
end
to
speculation
about
the
cause
of
her
death,
saying
she
accidentally
drowned
in
the
bathtub
following
loss
of
consciousness,
and
that
the
"case
was
now
closed".
However,
some
activists
feel
that
there
should
be
further
probe
to
find
out
the
circumstances
in
which
the
stunning
actress
died.
On
the
other
hand,
some
other
activists
are
of
the
view
that
there
is
no
scope
for
any
further
investigation
after
the
probe
by
Dubai
police.
The
legal
head
of
the
NGO
"Jai
Ho
Foundation" advocate
Adil
Khatri
has
sent
an
email
to
Mumbai
Police
Commissioner
Dattatrey
Padsalgikar
requesting
a
thorough
investigation
under
Code
of
Criminal
Procedure
(CrPC).
"Why
should
one
believe
everything
what
the
Dubai
police
is
telling?
In
the
interest
of
justice,
to
put
this
entire
speculation
to
rest,
Mumbai
police
must
exhaustively
investigate
the
entire
mysterious
death
of
our
beloved
Indian
actor
Sridevi.
Mumbai
Police
has
the
power
to
launch
an
extra
terrestrial
investigation,"
he
wrote.
"The
circumstances
of
accidental
death
are
unclear
and
it
has
witnessed
several
turning
points.
Internationally,
in
the
past,
there
have
been
inquiries
in
death
of
famous
personalities
like
Michael
Jackson,
Princess
Diana
etc.
This
case
also
deserves
a
fair
probe,"
Khatri
added.
Talking
to
PTI,
he
claimed
that
the
Police
Commissioner
has
forwarded
his
request
to
Joint
CP
(Law
and
Order),
"which
means
that
the
Commissioner
has
given
attention
to
my
request."
However,
the
Police
Commissioner
did
not
respond
to
a
message
seeking
his
comment
on
the
demand
for
probe.
Social
activist
and
lawyer
S
Balakrishnan
has
made
a
similar
demand
in
a
letter
to
Maharashtra
Chief
Minister
Devendra
Fadnavis.
"Even
though
the
death
took
place
in
Dubai,
nothing
prevents
the
Mumbai
police
from
suo
motu
conducting
parallel
investigation
since
Sridevi
was
domiciled
in
the
city
and
was
a
celebrity
with
a
huge
following,"
he
said.
"Initial
reports
emerging
from
Dubai
said
categorically
that
she
had
died
of
a
massive
cardiac
arrest.
And
now
it
is
stated
that
she
died
of
accidental
drowning.
This
is
absurd
because
no
forensic
doctor
will
state
the
cause
as
accidental
drowning
and
therefore,
it
is
the
job
of
the
Mumbai
police
to
find
out
if
it
was
an
accident
or
murder,"
he
added.
"I
have
sent
an
email
to
the
chief
minister,
underlining
how
her
death
has
left
so
many
questions,"
he
said.
On
the
other
hand,
noted
lawyer
and
human
rights
activist
Abha
Singh
felt
that
there
was
no
case
worth
investigating.
"It
is
natural
and
accidental
death
with
no
foul
play
suggested,"
she
said.
She
said
some
people
were
equating
Sridevi's
death
case
with
that
of
Sunanda
Pushkar,
wife
of
Congress
leader
Shashi
Tharoor,
but
the
two
cases
were
different.
The
actress
did
not
die
within
seven
years
of
marriage,
unlike
Sunanda,
Singh
pointed
out.
"Additionally,
the
Dubai
police
has
gone
by
the
law
and
therefore,
I
do
not
find
any
substance
why
Mumbai
police
should
still
conduct
investigation,"
she
added.PTI