MNS leader Amit Thackeray on Friday came out in support of his cousin and Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray, saying he could not have been involved in the Disha Salian death case. His comments came days after Aaditya denied ever knowing or meeting Salian and accused political opponents of attempting to tarnish his reputation by associating him with the case.
The comments followed the CBI’s registration of an FIR in the matter, without naming any accused, in accordance with directions from the Bombay High Court on a petition filed by Salian’s father. The High Court had earlier directed the CBI to investigate the death and criticised Mumbai Police for failing to register an FIR for six years.
Speaking to reporters, Amit Thackeray, the son of MNS chief Raj Thackeray, said, “I don't know how to look at this, but as a brother I can tell you that Aaditya can never be involved in such a thing.”
Disha Salian, a 28-year-old former manager of late actor Sushant Singh Rajput, died on June 8, 2020, after falling from the 12th floor of a residential building in Mumbai’s Malad area. Mumbai Police initially registered an accidental death report and later concluded after an inquiry that she had died by suicide.
Rajput died a week later, on June 14, 2020, after being found dead in his Bandra apartment, prompting speculation about a possible connection between the two deaths. On September 2, the Bombay High Court ordered a CBI investigation into Salian’s death and criticised Mumbai Police for not registering an FIR for six years, observing that the investigation had raised more questions than it answered.
Following the CBI’s FIR, Aaditya wrote on X on Wednesday that “such malicious propaganda with political motives” would not prevent him from pursuing the truth. He said he had never met or known Salian and described the repeated attempts to connect his name to the case as a deliberate, evidence-free effort by certain individuals to damage his reputation for political and personal reasons.
The latest developments have once again brought the case into the spotlight, with Amit Thackeray expressing support for Aaditya while the CBI investigates Salian’s death following the Bombay High Court’s directions.
