New Delhi: Actor Sooraj Pancholi has responded to the continued media coverage that refers to the case surrounding Jiah Khan’s death as “unanswered.” Citing the 14-year court trial, he urged platforms to report facts accurately and respect the court’s verdict, which was based strictly on evidence.
According to Pancholi, who was in a relationship with Khan at the time of her death, no “unanswered questions” remain in the legal record. Pancholi added that the full court proceedings are publicly accessible to anyone willing to look before forming an opinion.
Khan was a budding Bollywood actor, having starred alongside Amitabh Bachchan, Aamir Khan and Akshay Kumar among others. She was found dead at her home in Mumbai’s Juhu on June 3, 2013. Police later arrested Pancholi based on a six-page letter purportedly written by the 25-year-old. He was charged with abetment of suicide, followed by his arrest in June 2013. A month later, Pancholi was released on bail.
After a decade and a half, the actor has finally broken his silence on the case.
“To ALL the Media pages out there! Please explain what you believe remains ‘unanswered,’ and kindly make sure your facts are accurate. I went through a 14-year court trial. The case was decided on the basis of facts, evidence and the law. I was acquitted, and there are no ‘unanswered questions’ from the legal proceedings. All the court records and trial proceedings are publicly available for anyone who genuinely wants to understand the facts before forming an opinion,” he wrote on Instagram.
View this post on Instagram
Pancholi also revealed how Khan’s death and his subsequent arrest shaped his life. He was just 22 years old and had known Khan for only about four months.
“I had known her for barely four months, and I had no idea what she may have been going through internally. At that age, I was too young to understand that someone could be carrying so much. What followed changed my life forever,” he said.
Pancholi went on to describe the toll of the legal battle that followed. He added that years that should have gone towards building his career and adult life were instead spent under the weight of a prolonged trial that stretched through most of his twenties and into his thirties.
The actor said that only he truly knows what that period cost him, mentally and emotionally.
“I spent the next 14 years fighting to prove my innocence. Those were the years when I should have been building my life. Instead, I lived under the weight of a trial that consumed my twenties and a large part of my thirties. Only I know what I carried in my mind and in my heart every single day,” Pancholi said.
Reaffirming his trust in the legal system, the actor went on to say that the courtroom was the only avenue available to him to establish his innocence. After years, that faith was vindicated with his acquittal, and he added that if people still choose to hold him guilty regardless, he is at a loss for what more he could do to change that.
The actor also addressed why he chose to stay quiet for so long, arguing that his silence shouldn’t be mistaken for an invitation to say whatever anyone wants about him.
“Out of respect, I have never spoken publicly about the personal traumas she shared with me or the struggles she faced in her life. I chose to protect her privacy despite everything I have been through. I only ask for the same fairness and respect in return,” he wrote.
Pancholi acknowledged that for most people reading it, this story is just another headline, but for him, it’s been his entire adult life. Every careless headline, misleading clip, or false narrative, he said, reopens a chapter he has spent years trying to move past.
“Every careless headline, every misleading video, and every false narrative reopens a chapter I have spent years trying to survive. All I ask is that you approach this with honesty, responsibility, sensitivity and professionalism. If you are going to tell my story, please tell the whole story,” Pancholi added.
(Edited by Insha Jalil Waziri)