Rhea Chakraborty, who faced intense scrutiny and vilification after actor Sushant Singh Rajput\u2019s death on June 14, 2020, was cleared of all wrongdoing after the CBI\u2019s closure report in March 2025<\/p>\n
HEMA SINGULURI | Hyderabad\u00a0<\/p>\n
Following journalist Preeti Choudhary\u2019s public apology to actor Rhea Chakraborty, public debate has reignited over media accountability in India. Many praised the journalist\u2019s courage, while others called it too little, too late.<\/p>\n
Rhea Chakraborty, who faced intense scrutiny and vilification after actor Sushant Singh Rajput\u2019s death on June 14, 2020, was cleared of all wrongdoing after the CBI\u2019s closure report in March 2025, which ruled out foul play. The report triggered renewed discussion on the years of emotional and professional damage she endured during the media trial.<\/p>\n
Apologies and Reactions<\/p>\n
In a candid statement, Preeti Choudhary said, \u201cIt was a disgrace, and I\u2019m sorry.\u201d Admitting the media\u2019s role in amplifying baseless accusations, she added, \u201cAs a collective, we owe Rhea an apology because a huge chunk of what we did was a disgrace.\u201d Her remarks quickly went viral, earning both applause and criticism across social media.<\/p>\n
Zee founder Subhash Chandra also issued an apology on X, acknowledging that the network\u2019s coverage had unfairly painted Chakraborty as an accused. \u201cShe was made out to be guilty by the media, led by Zee News through its editor and reporters at the time. I do apologize to Rhea, even with no personal involvement,\u201d he wrote.<\/p>\n
Bollywood figures supported the gesture but demanded broader accountability. Dia Mirza urged the entire media fraternity to admit fault, while Pooja Bhatt wrote, \u201cThe truth has prevailed. #PrayersAnswered,\u201d echoing relief after the CBI\u2019s verdict.<\/p>\n
Public Response<\/p>\n
Public sentiment online remains divided. While many users praised Choudhary\u2019s courage, others argued that a single apology is insufficient. One X user wrote, \u201cThe entire channel owes a public apology to Rhea and her family.\u201d Another remarked, \u201cJustice may be delayed, but it will not be denied.\u201d<\/p>\n
A Facebook post read, \u201cA large section of the media owes Rhea Chakraborty and her family a huge apology.\u201d Users also cited the Bombay High Court\u2019s October 2025 decision to return Chakraborty\u2019s passport as further vindication.<\/p>\n
The episode has reignited scrutiny of the media\u2019s role in shaping public perception and the ethics of sensational coverage. While Rhea Chakraborty has received an outpouring of support from peers and the public, the debate over responsible journalism and accountability continues to dominate discussions online.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Rhea Chakraborty, who faced intense scrutiny and vilification after actor Sushant Singh Rajput\u2019s death on June 14, 2020,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":112746,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[68391,321,93,61,60,68389,68390,68260,68392],"class_list":["post-112745","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-celebrities","tag-after-journalists-apology","tag-celebrities","tag-entertainment","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-media-accountability-debate","tag-rekindled","tag-rhea-chakraborty","tag-zee-founder-subhash-chandra"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/112745","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=112745"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/112745\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/112746"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=112745"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=112745"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=112745"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}