On Monday, the Bombay High Court directed the removal of actor Salman Khan's name as a respondent in a petition requesting a CBI investigation into the custodial death of an accused involved in a shooting incident outside the actor's residence.

Anuj Thapan, the accused, was found dead on May 1 within the confines of the crime branch police lock-up.

Under the directive of a division bench comprising Justices Revati Mohite-Dere and Shyam Chandak, petitioner Rita Devi, who is the mother of Anuj Thapan, was instructed to remove Salman Khan's name from the petition.

"Delete his name. Petitioner seeks leave to amend the petition to delete the name of respondent 4 (Salman Khan) as there is no pleading against him and no relief sought against him," the court said.

On April 14, there was an incident where two individuals on motorcycles fired shots outside the residence of Bollywood superstar Salman Khan in the Bandra area. The alleged perpetrators, identified as Vicky Gupta and Sagar Pal, were apprehended in Gujarat following the incident. Anuj Thapan, along with another individual, was arrested on April 26 in Punjab on suspicion of supplying weapons to the shooters involved in the attack on Khan's residence.

While the police assert that Anuj Thapan committed suicide, Rita Devi, in her petition filed on May 3 in the High Court, alleged foul play and contended that he was murdered. Her plea requested the High Court to instruct the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to investigate her son's death. The petition stated that Thapan had been subjected to physical assault and torture by the police while in custody. In her plea, Rita Devi had included Khan as a respondent.

On Monday, the High Court stated that the petition did not include any allegations or requests directed towards Khan, rendering his involvement in the plea unnecessary.

"What is the point of making a person who is supposed to be the victim a party respondent? We see no reason why respondent 4 should continue to be in this plea. He is not a necessary party," the bench said.

The High Court observed that the primary concern of the petitioner was the death of her son, and there was no justification for including Khan as a respondent in the plea.

"You (petitioner) are concerned with the death of your son...that the court will look into...but what is the point of impleading respondent 4 in the plea," the bench asked.

"This is too far-fetched. No relief is sought against him (Salman Khan) and no averment or allegation is made against him," the court added.

The petitioner's advocate informed the court that although they are not seeking any action against the actor in their plea, they believe he should be included in the investigation being conducted by the state Crime Investigation Department (CID) regarding Thapan's death. The court responded by stating that it is within the jurisdiction of the CID to determine the course of the investigation.

The court remarked that by adding Khan as a respondent in the plea, the petitioner was diverting attention away from the primary issue, which is the death of her son.

"Your (petitioner) focus should be on the main issue. By doing this, you are digressing from the core issue which should be your concern," it said.

Additional Public Prosecutor Prajakta Shinde informed the court that in accordance with the law, a magisterial inquiry had been initiated and submitted a status report of the CID investigation to the High Court. Rita Devi's advocate informed the court that the magistrate had issued summons to the petitioner on May 10, instructing her to appear for statement recording on May 23, but the summons were received late, on May 24.

The court ordered that the magistrate should issue new summons to the petitioner, ensuring timely delivery so she can attend. The High Court scheduled the next hearing for six weeks from the current date.