Aarushi-Hemraj murder: SC notice to Talwar couple on plea against acquittal
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday issued notice to Rajesh and Nupur Talwar on a plea challenging their acquittal in the Aarushi-Hemraj double murder case by the Allahabad High Court.
The plea was filed by Khumkala Banjade, the widow of Hemraj, who was the Talwars' domestic help.
While issuing notice to Talwars, the bench of Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice R. Banumathi also granted leave in the matter which puts the appeal in the queue of the cases and may take long before it is actually heard by the court.
The court also granted leave in the appeal filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation as its counsel told the bench that the investigating agency too has moved the court against Allahabad High Court verdict and its petition was pending.
On October 12 last year, a High Court bench of Justice B.K. Narayana and Justice A.K. Mishra acquitted the couple by giving them the benefit of doubt.
Aarushi, 14, and Hemraj were found murdered at the Talwars' Jalvayu Vihar home in Noida on May 16, 2008.
The High Court's order came on an appeal by the Talwars against a Ghaziabad CBI court's November 26, 2013 order sentencing them to life imprisonment, bringing an end to the couple's nine-year ordeal.
After Aarushi was found murdered in her bedroom, Hemraj was initially considered a suspect. However, his body too was found in a pool of blood a day later on the terrace of the house.
The High Court, while acquitting the Talwars, had made comments on the CBI trial court judge, saying he had adopted a "partial and parochial approach" in his 2013 judgment to convict the parents for the double murder.
It said the trial court's judgment was based on "creation of fanciful reasoning" and "presuming facts with indomitable obstinacy and taking things for granted, and thus basing the conclusion on unfounded evidence".
The Uttar Pradesh Police had accused Rajesh Talwar on May 23, 2008 of killing his daughter in a fit of rage.
On May 31, 2008, the CBI took over the case and initially absolved the parents but later held them responsible for the two murders.
On June 13, 2008, the CBI arrested Rajesh Talwar's compounder Krishna. Ten days later, Raj Kumar, a servant of a doctor friend of the Talwars, and Vijay Mandal, the domestic help of the Talwars' neighbour, were also arrested. The three were later freed after no evidence was found against them.
The CBI had filed a closure report in the case in December 2010 but the special CBI court had rejected it.
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Explosion near CRPF School in Delhi caused by lit cigarette butts: Report
New Delhi: The investigation team that probed the explosion that took place outside the CRPF School in the Prashant Vihar area of the city on October 20 morning has reportedly not found any terror force behind the blast.
The investigation team, consisting of Delhi Police and staff members from central agencies, has stated in its report that cigarette butts thrown by a local resident might have come in contact with industrial waste and have caused the explosion. Circumstantial evidence does not show the incident to have a terror angle to it, reports The Indian Express.
The Delhi Police, the city bomb squad and the fire brigade had rushed to the spot following the explosion, which was initially believed to have been caused by a crude bomb. The forensic experts who inspected the spot hinted at the presence of potassium chlorate, hydrogen peroxide and some electrical wires there. The school wall had been damaged and the windows of a car nearby had shattered in the explosion.
The investigation team scanned the CCTV camera footage and zeroed in on around 10 people questioned. A senior police officer said that a North Delhi-based businessman from Prashant Vihar was found to be present at the spot around five minutes before the explosion, as he had come there on Sunday morning to walk his dog. The CCTV footage showed him smoking and, after questioning him, the team concluded that he had left lit cigarette butts before leaving the spot, the officer added.
The spot where the explosion took place is learned to have been usually used for dumping garbage and also has a public urinal.
An officer has said that the Delhi Police had consulted forensic and technical experts of the National Security Guard regarding the things found on the explosion site but are yet to get the report. The officer added that they have found no detonator so far.
