The Central government has decided not to challenge the bail granted to Bollywood actress Rhea Chakraborty by the Bombay High Court. Rhea Chakraborty was facing cases registered against her under the Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (NDPS Act).

The Additional Solicitor General SV Raju informed the Supreme Court that while the government would not pursue its appeal against the grant of bail, it wanted to keep the Bombay High Court's interpretation of Section 27A of the NDPS Act open for the challenge at a later stage. Section 27A of the NDPS Act deals with offenses related to financing illicit drug trafficking and harboring offenders, carrying a maximum sentence of 20 years in jail.

The Supreme Court accepted the government's decision and disposed of the appeal, clarifying that the Bombay High Court's order would not be treated as a precedent in future cases. The High Court had granted bail to Rhea Chakraborty in October 2020, while rejecting the bail pleas of some co-accused, including her brother Showik Chakraborty.

Rhea Chakraborty and the other accused were alleged to have facilitated the procurement of drugs for the consumption of late actor Sushant Singh Rajput. After their bail pleas were rejected by a Special NDPS Court in Mumbai, they had approached the Bombay High Court, which granted bail to Rhea Chakraborty, Samuel Miranda, and Dipesh Sawant.

As part of her bail conditions, Rhea Chakraborty had to furnish a PR Bond of Rs. 1 lakh and was restricted from leaving the country. The Central government's appeal to the Supreme Court against the bail order came more than five months after the High Court's decision.