My daughter was abused by actor Sooraj Pancholi, claims Jiah Khan's mother

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• Aug 18, 2022 | Poonam Nath

Jiah Khan's mother testified before a special court in Mumbai that Bollywood star Suraj Pancholi used to assault Jiah Khan verbally and physically.

Digital Desk: Actress Jia Khan's mother, Rabia Khan, testified in court that her daughter had wished to quit her relationship with actor Sooraj Pancholi due to physical and psychological abuse. Jia Khan was found dead in her apartment in 2013.

Pancholi, one of the defendants in the case, was seated in court when Khan entered the witness booth. Her husband was watching her during the deposition from a nearby seat. "I am the mother of Nafisa, Karishma, and Kavita. Kavita just turned 30, Nafisa, whose online identity was Jia, was 25 when she went away, and Karishma is 31. Nafisa was naturalized and became a citizen after being born in New York. I was Indian at the time Nafisa was born, and I held an Indian passport," Khan initiated her testimony.

Nafisa completed her secondary education in London before moving to New York at the age of 17. She was a student at the Lee Strasberg Theatre & Film Institute when she visited Mumbai on vacation and met film director Ram Gopal Verma. 

Jia's mother had not accompanied her to the 20-day film schedule in Kerala because her two other children were still in school and need her presence.

Sooraj Pancholi, Aditya Pancholi's son, was in a relationship with Jiah Khan, 25. He has been charged with aiding suicide in Jiah Khan's suspected suicide case, which is being investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

The actor, though, is currently free on bond. Rabia Khan, Jiah Khan's London-based mother, began recording her testimony in the case against Sooraj before special judge A S Sayyad on Wednesday.

Rabia claimed in her testimony that her daughter Jiah Khan first met Sooraj Pancholi in September 2012 after the actor approached her via a social networking site and insisted on seeing her. According to Rabia, Jiah was initially 'apprehensive and reluctant to meet Sooraj but subsequently accepted.

Jiah's mother also said that Aditya Pancholi's kid Sooraj had "taken over" her daughter's everyday routine. According to Rabia, Jiah and Sooraj began living at each other's homes by October 2012, and the actress appeared quite happy when she visited their London home in November that year.

Jiah subsequently returned to Mumbai and was meant to return to London for Christmas, but the actress did not appear. Rabia stated that she learned Sooraj and Jiah had a violent fight on December 24, 2012, after receiving a message from Sooraj in which he stated that he became angry with Jiah after a quarrel with a friend and that she (Jiah) should forgive him and give him another chance.

Rabia stated that her daughter did give Sooraj another chance. However, during their trip to Goa, Sooraj allegedly embarrassed Jiah in front of his friends and flirted with other women in her company, according to Rabia, who added that her daughter Jiah mentioned being in an unfamiliar area and not wanting to stay there in one of her phone conversations.

According to her suicide note, Suraj Pancholi had cheated on Jiah Khan and devastated her life. She even admitted that she had to get an abortion after becoming pregnant with him.

"I was terrified of being pregnant, but I entirely trusted myself. The misery you have caused me every day has devastated every part of me, including my spirit. I'm unable to eat, sleep, think, or function. I'm trying to get away from everything. The career is no longer worthwhile. According to accounts, she wrote in the letter.

The CBI claimed that Jiah Khan wrote a three-page letter that was recovered by the Mumbai Police, which was the first to investigate the matter, on June 10, 2013.

The actress, well known for her role in Amitabh Bachchan's Hindi film "Nishabd," was discovered hanging at her Mumbai home on June 3, 2013.

The testimony of Jiah Khan's mother will continue on Thursday.