Mumbai: The family of Sheezan Khan, the accused in the suicide of actor Tunisha Sharma, denied the allegations made against the actor by the deceased’s mother, sharing the details about Tunisha’s past to describe how her family mistreated her.
Sheezan Khan’s mother, his sisters Falaq Naaz, and Shafaq Naaz and his lawyer Shailendra Mishra addressed the press to counter the falsity being spread by her mother, Vanita Sharma, against Sheezan.
They said he did not have any secret girlfriend, a claim made by Tunisha’s mother in the media and neither they forced her to religious conversion nor make her wear hijab.
Shafaq Naaz said Tunisha for them was a family member who had shared a strong bond with the family. Shafaq countered the photo of her in hijab being circulated on social media, saying she wore it for the shooting not for real.
Sheezan’s lawyer Mishra stated, "Tunisha's so-called uncle Pawan Sharma was her former manager, he was fired 4 yrs ago because he used to interfere a lot & behave harshly with her." He went on to say, "Tunisha & Sanjeev Kaushal (an uncle in Chandigarh) had terrible relations. Sanjeev Kaushal & her mother, Vanita used to control Tunisha's finances. Tunisha often pleaded in front
Shafaq also linked Tunisha’s depression to her childhood trauma.
She said Tunisha and her mother used to come to their home on many occasions. "We never forced anyone to do anything," she said.
Sheezan’s mother said Tunisha’s mother should produce evidence for the allegations that she has been making against him.
On the allegation that Sheezan had slapped Ms Sharma once during a shoot, the accused actor's mother asked, "Why had Vanita Sharma not complained to us or slapped Sheezan?"
Shafaq said everyone knew how Tunisha’s mother used to call her many times a day.
"We also want justice for Tunisha, but her mother is trying to falsely implicate Sheezan in the case, that is not correct," she said.
"We had decided to give Tunisha a surprise on her birthday on January 4. Her mother also know very well, she was like our younger sister. We had spent around six months with Tunisha which she enjoyed and we are proud of it," Ms Naaz said.
On the allegations that Sharma was being forced to wear a hijab and visit dargah, she said, "We never asked her to do anything." Referring to a picture of Ms Sharma wearing a hijab going viral on social media, Khan's other sister claimed the actor had worn the head cover at the time of a shoot.