SC cautions media on Aarushi murder case reporting

July 23, 2008 21:58 IST
MICS-India By shekhar Kulshreshtha

The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed the media to exercise caution in reporting or telecasting matters relating to the sensational twin murder involving teenager Aarushi and her domestic help Hemraj.

A bench of Justice Altamas Kabir and Markandeya Katju directed that the media should report the issue with objectivity so as not to cause any prejudice to the reputation of the teenager's family and friends.

The bench order came while posting for August 18, a public interest petition filed by Surat Singh, a practising advocate, seeking a series of directions to protect the reputation of the Aarushi Talwar's family.

Singh alleged the family's reputation has been maligned by the media and the police and sought action against the investigators keeping the teenager's father in custody for 50 days before declaring him innocent.

Besides the Union Home Ministry, Ministry of Law and Justice, Information& Broadcasting Ministry, Central Bureau of Investigation, and the Uttar Pradesh police, the public interest litigation has arrayed media organisations, including newspapers and TV channels, as respondents before the court.

Aarushi murder case: Timeline

MICS- India Bureau by shekhar kulshreshtha The sequence of events following Aarushi- Hemraj double murder case: May 16: Aarushi Talwar, daughter of a dentist couple, found dead with her throat slit in the bedroom of her flat in Jal Vayu Vihar; domestic help Hemraj suspected. May 17, 2008: Hemraj's body found on the terrace of Talwar's house. Noida Sector-20 Police Station House Officer shifted for lapses in investigations. Autopsy report rules out sexual assault. May 18, 2008: The police say a sharp-edged surgical instrument was used to slit the throats of Aarushi and Hemraj. Additional Director General of Uttar Pradesh police Brij Lal says the double murder will be probed by the state Special Task Force (STF). May 19, 2008: Talwar's former Nepalese domestic help Vishnu Sharma named suspect. May 20: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati visits Noida, avoids Talwar family. May 21, 2008: Delhi Police join murder probe; police say murder committed by a "doctor or a butcher". May 22, 2008: Family under suspicion; honor killing angle probed; police quiz Aarushi's close friend, whom she spoke to 688 times in the 45 days preceding her murder. May 23, 2008: Rajesh Talwar, father of Aarushi, held for double murder. Gurdarshan Singh, the Inspector General of Police, Meerut range, says that Talwar killed his daughter Aarushi in a fit of rage after finding her in an "objectionable position but not compromising state" with Hemraj. He says Hemraj was murdered first. Talwar sent to judicial custody. May 24, 2008: Aarushi's mother, Nupur Talwar, claims her husband is innocent. May 25, 2008: Family meets Talwar in Ghaziabad's Dasna jail. May 26, 2008: Dentist Anita Durrani denies illicit relations with Rajesh Talwar. The police says Aarushi objected to this relationship. May 27, 2008: Talwar sent to three-day police custody. The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights asks the police to explain "objectionable" statements on Aarushi. Aarushi's schoolmates protest against her character assassination. Family demands probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). May 28, 2008: Women and Child Development Minister Renuka Chowdhury criticises the Uttar Pradesh Police for "character assassination" of Aarushi. Officer investigating the case changed for the third time. May 29, 2008: The Uttar Pradesh government recommends CBI probe. May 30, 2008: Talwar sent to judicial custody. June 1, 2008: CBI registers case against Rajesh Talwar in Noida double murder. June 2, 2008: CBI examines Talwar's house, questions Anita Durrani. Talwar sent to CBI custody for a day. June 3, 2008: CBI gets Talwar's custody for two more days. Mayawati defends the state police in Noida double murder probe. June 4, 2008: Talwar undergoes lie-detector test. June 5, 2008: Talwar sent to 14 days' judicial remand. June 6, 2008: CBI searches Talwars' house and sewer lines for murder weapon. June 7, 2008: Rajesh Talwar's bail plea deferred. June 10, 2008: Lie detector test on Talwar's compunder Krishna. CBI conducts fresh search at Talwar's residence. Talwar again denied bail. Krishna emerges as prime suspect. June 11, 2008: CBI takes Krishna to Bangalore for narco test. June 12, 2008: Krishna undergoes narco test. June 13, 2008: The Nepalese compounder of Dr Rajesh Talwar, Krishna (alias Kishan) arrested by CBI. The arrest followed polygraph test and Narco Analysis test at Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL), Bangalore the day before. He was earlier subjected to polygraph test twice at Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL), Delhi as well as psychological assessment test at AIIMS, New Delhi on June 9, 2008; based on the test results, CBI arrested Krishna. June 14, 2008: Krishna the compounder of Dr Rajesh Talwar was produced before the duty magistrate, district courts, Ghaziabad. CBI requested for 14 days Police custody of Krishna for further investigation. The Magistrate granted 3 days police custody remand. He was to be produced before the Special Magistrate for CBI cases at Ghaziabad on June 17, 2008. Earlier on the, a CBI team conducted search at Jalvayu Vihar, Noida, where Krishna used to live. CBI team had seized some clothing and other materials for forensic examination. Rajkumar, the Nepalese domestic help of the Duranis, was subjected to polygraph test at CFSL, Delhi. June 19, 2008: The judicial custody of Dr Rajesh Talwar was extended up to July 2, 2008. An application was moved for second lie detection test of Dr Rajesh Talwar, as his first lie detection test remained inconclusive, experts advised for a second lie detection test. Lie detector test on also been conducted on Vijay Mandal the domestic help of a neighbour of the Talwars. June 17, 2008: Krishna produced before special magistrate, CBI court, Ghaziabad. CBI applied for further 11 days police custody remand for continuing the investigation. The magistrate granted 6 days police custody. He was to be produced before CBI magistrate, Ghaziabad on June 23, 2008. A team accompanied by forensic expert thoroughly searched the room where Rajkumar used to live in Sector 53, Noida. Earlier, something seized from this room on June 13, 2008 was being forensically examined. June 20, 2008: Lie detection test of Dr Rajesh Talwar conducted at CFSL, Delhi. June 23, 2008: Krishna arrested by CBI on June 13, 2008 produced before the special magistrate, CBI courts, Ghaziabad. After completion of 6 days police custody given on June 17, 2008, CBI requested for further custody of Krishna for 4 days for further interrogation and recovery of weapon. The magistrate passed an order extending his further police custody for 4 days. He was to be produced before the Court on June 27, 2008. June 25, 2008: Second lie detection test was conducted on Dr Nupur Talwar. Her first lie detection test was found inconclusive. June 26, 2008: The CBI declared the case to be a "blind case". Dr Rajesh Talwar refused bail by the special magistrate, CBI courts, Ghaziabad. June 27, 2008: Krishna taken to Talwars' residence by the CBI and thereafter produced before the special magistrate, where his bail plea was rejected once again. The Talwars' family friends Duranis' Nepalese domestic help Rajkumar arrested on the suspicion of involvement in the murder. Some washed T-shirts with faint human blood stains seized and sent for DNA matching. However, the Duranis (doctors themselves) maintained that the stains could be from the boils that Rajkumar had on his body. Rajkumar had already been subjected to polygraph test, psychological assessment, brain mapping and narco analysis at FSL, Gandhinagar from June 23 to June 26, 2008. June 28, 2008: Rajkumar produced before special magistrate, CBI court, Ghaziabad and is sent to police custody for 14 days. He looked unperturbed with a smile. June 30, 2008: Krishna's lawyer approached a Ghaziabad court for his bail. However, it was refused because the court that was approached did not have sufficient powers in this case. CBI joint director Arun Kumar who was in charge of the investigation received a letter from Uttar Pradesh government for recall to his original cadre in Uttar Pradesh. July 2, 2008: Once again, Dr Rajesh Talwar was produced before special magistrate, CBI court, Ghaziabad. His bail plea was rejected and his judicial custody extended till July 11, 2008. CBI said that he was still among the suspects. July 3, 2008: The Supreme Court of India rejected a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) case which challenged the administration of narco-analysis test on the accused in the case. A bench headed by Justice Altamas Kabir refused to hear the petition, as the petitioner, a lawyers' body, was an unregistered entity. July 6, 2008: A major English daily revealed that, apparently, on the night the murders were committed, the dentist couple Dr Rajesh and Dr Nupur left their flat around midnight and came back around 5 am. They went to a high society party for which some 12 suites were booked in a posh South Delhi hotel. July 7, 2008: CBI came out with an official statement on their site, stating, "A section of media has reported quoting CBI sources that Dr Rajesh Talwar and Dr Nupur Talwar were not present in their house on the night of 15th May, 2008 and more than a dozen rooms were booked in a hotel in Delhi. It is clarified that the news item is speculative and not true. Investigation of the case is progressing diligently." Earlier, Dr Nupur Talwar went to the CBI headquarters and refuted the allegations regarding their absence on the night of the murders. She also expressed her intentions to take legal action against the media house. However, some other TV channels debated the merits of her and CBI's affirmations in the light of glaring gaps in the Talwars' story. July 9, 2008: Rakumar, the domestic help of the Durranis who are close associates and family friends of the Talwars, was subjected by CBI to narco-analysis test at FSL Bangalore. Rajkumar's police custody ends on July 11, 2008. It was Rajkumar's second narco-analysis test. July 10, 2008: A news report on some TV channels suggested that CBI had some breakthrough on Rajkumar as the culprit and had confessed during narco-analysis test. He was learned to have committed this along with Krishna, Sambhu and allegedly Hemraj also. The reason told by him was lust and killing Hemraj for fear that Hemraj might have disclosed information. July 11, 2008: Vijay Mandal the servant of one of the neighbors of the Talwars was arrested. Arun Kumar, Joint Director CBI, held a press conference. In the press conference he stated that the CBI was awaiting DNA matching of washed bloodstains on Rajkumar's T-shirts. He confirmed the affirmation that the CBI still considered a blind case. Dr Rajesh Talwar and Krishna both appeared before special CBI court, Ghaziabad to seek bail. Their petitioned were heard and Dr Rajesh Talwar has been decided to be realeased, as the CBI had no evidence against him as of now. Eminent criminal lawyer R K Anand undertook to defend Krishna. CBI now tentatively believes some two or three domestic helps and Krishna to be the prime suspects. However, CBI just has forensic evidence, which is not admissible as evidence in the court. Still, there is no recovery of the weapon of murder and the two cell phones respectively of Aarushi and Hemraj. July 12, 2008: Dr Rajesh Talwar released from Ghazibad’s Dasna jail, meets his wife, Dr Nupur Talwar and brother, Dinesh Talwar. Dr Talwar visits Sai Baba Temple with his family members and thanks God and CBI while speaking to the media.

Aarushi murder case: Who will raise the curtain?

MICS -India - Shekhar kulshreshtha

The case was started when the dead body of Aarushi was found in her bedroom. From here began the first intelligence and the mountebank, when the UP Police told media that the killer of Aarushi is Hemraj, without seeing his dead body on the roof of Talwar’s flat. This was the beginning of absurdity and the idiocy of the UP Police in solving the murder mystery of this double murder.

Many arrests followed one after another. First target was Dr. Talwar, then Krishna and then Rajkumar. And lastly UP Police did not forgive Anita Durrani and Talwar’s wife also. One by one everyone was targeted by the UP Police, but nothing came in their hand. The rigmarole methods without any reason were applied on these doubtful suspects one by one by the UP Police.

The nation's most popular and hyped story was in the context of a ninth class teenager girl, who did not know that she’ll be stretched out and would face these situations after her murder in front of the world. Aarushi murder mystery placed everyone on tenterhooks.

Everyone was puzzled by the much hyped mystery tumbling between the media and the mass. The whole drama staged many players including UP Police who collectively gave an interesting climax to the whole case study. Everyday brought new twist and turns into this perfectly executed murder. “But who is the culprit”? This is a question which is still unanswered despite many probes in the case.

The hype and the hoopla of the burning issue of the Aarushi-Hemraj murder case lastly came into a very dramatic crossing. It seemed that the case had been settled down after the CBI’s probe in this mysterious murder case, but lastly, when the whole riddle seem to have been solved out to a greater extent, some theories are still carrying question marks with them

Everyone tried to build his own theories of the twin murder case and the case generated a world wide public interest. The UP Police with his ever changing facets of statements, confused the masses and riddled the whole case. And when the round of tests started on the suspects, it seemed it's never going to end.

Lastly CBI, tired of doing any further probe, declared the new result that the prime suspects now are the three servants. But all was in vain with no substantial evidence against them to prove them culprits. Neither are the murder weapons found nor the purpose of the murder is clear till now. Still the suspect is behind the curtain. But who knows may be one day or the other... or may be any theory or may be any little clue, can act like a curtain raiser for that Culprit.

Nupur Talwar subjected to lie detection test

Wednesday, June 25, 2008 (New Delhi) -MICS - India

As the probe into the Noida double murder is yet to achieve any breakthrough, the CBI on Wednesday subjected Nupur Talwar, the mother of slain teenager Aarushi, to a lie detection test to corroborate certain leads acquired by the investigating agency.

Nupur, accompanied by family members, arrived at the CBI headquarters in Delhi to undergo the test in which investigators asked her questions pertaining to the murder of Aarushi and their domestic help Hemraj, sources said.

The CBI officials also asked Nupur certain questions related to her husband Rajesh, prime accused in the case, and their compounder Krishna, another accused.

The investigators continued its interrogation of Krishna, presently under its custody. However, the agency is yet to make any breakthrough into the sensational double murder.

The discrepancies in Krishna's statements to the CBI is giving rise to the suspicion that either he was the person who allegedly carried out the gruesome murders or was actively part of the criminal conspiracy hatched to carry out the killing.

A 'Khukri', seized from Krishna's house, has been sent for forensic examination to find out whether it was used in the murders.

Meanwhile, the bail application of the dentist, presently lodged at Dasna jail, will come up for hearing on Thursday before the Ghaziabad District and Sessions Judge

Dr Talwar still a suspect, loses bail plea

Thursday, June 26, 2008 (New Delhi) MICS - India

Rajesh Talwar, an accused in the Noida double murder case, will continue to remain in jail as a Sessions Court on Thursday rejected his bail application after CBI claimed that it had reasonable grounds to suspect his involvement.

Rejecting the bail application, District and Sessions Judge Narender Kumar Jain said Talwar would continue to be in the judicial custody. He was arrested on May 23 by Noida Police for allegedly murdering his 14-year-old daughter Aarushi and domestic help Hemraj.

NDTV adds: In the order, Sessions Judge Narendra Kumar Jain observed, ''The most astonishing fact is that the deceased Aarushi was found murdered in a room, the keys of which were with the present accused and his wife. The deceased had gone to her room at around 11:45 pm and closed the door. Under the above circumstances, there are reasonable grounds about the involvement of the accused in the offence, only for the purpose of bail matter.''

The case was later transferred to CBI which carried out a custodial interrogation of Talwar, a dentist by profession.

Arguing on behalf of Talwar, his counsel Satish Tamta stated before the court that nothing incriminating was found against his client by the CBI, which continued to remain inconsistent about his involvement in the case.

Countering the bail application, CBI counsel A K Saini, while maintaining it continued to be a blind murder case, contended that there was reasonable ground to believe that Talwar was involved in the crime.

Earlier, Talwar's counsel said there is no evidence with the CBI against him till date, except for a statement taken by the CBI officials under 161 Criminal Procedure Code whereby he would be helping the probe agency in finding out the evidence in the crime.

Tamta pointed out that the statement given before the investigators was not admissible in law.

While making it clear that Talwar would continue to cooperate in the case, the defence lawyer even highlighted the Talwar family's service in the field of medicine and said he was from an illustrious family and would work along with the CBI in finding out the culprit besides joining any further scientific tests suggested by the probe agency.

No evidence against Krishna, says lawyer

GHAZIABAD: On a day when Krishan, the main accused in the Aarushi-Hemraj murder case, broke down in a Ghaziabad court, his counsel F C Sharma told the court that CBI had nothing against his client and yet wanted to hold on to him. "Krishna had been in CBI’s illegal custody from June 3 to June 13. On June 13, he was officially arrested. But, CBI has nothing to show for its investigations. In fact, nothing has been produced against Krishna in the 37 days since the murder of Aarushi and Hemraj."

When Sharma asked CBI what more tests they needed to conduct on Krishna, CBI counsel said: "We cannot reveal this in an open court. But the investigations have been carried out vigorously, all through."

Turning to his sister, Parvati, and other relatives present in court, a weeping Krishna said he was innocent. Parvati consoled him: "Everything will be alright. Just have faith."

If the CBI claims to have a confession from Krishna, it may not amount to much since it won’t be admissible in court as evidence. It is to be seen whether the defence is using this to weaken CBI’s case. And, if CBI indeed has any case against him or not.

Krishna had been first picked up for questioning by the Noida police just after Aarushi’s body was found lying in a pool of blood on her own bed. That was from his home, around 6.30am on May 16. But, later, he was brought in as a witness and to help the police find Hemraj till the latter’s body was found. He was then questioned for a week, like many others, and then allowed to go.

Member of a family of four, who live in a room in retired Group Captain K N Johri’s house in Jalvayu Vihar, Krishna was detained by CBI on June 3 and put under the scanner in Bangalore.

On the evening of June 13, CBI’s Arun Kumar, declared: "Krishna has made a confessional statement". The FIR earlier filed by CBI pertained to murder, concealment of evidence and entering into a criminal conspiracy.

But Krishna’s sister, Parvati, and other family members told reporters that he had been at home on the night of May 15. "He returned from work around 9pm and went to sleep after dinner, around 10pm," Parvati claimed.

On June 15, a CBI team took Krishna to the Talwar home to re-enact the incident and next day they searched the drains and terrace of Dr Talwar’s house, drawing a blank.

The khukri of Krishna, which was collected by CBI for forensic examination last week and which Krishna allegedly said had been asked for by Hemraj, had once earlier been checked out by CBI.

Meanwhile, retired Group Captain K N Johri — whose daughter lives in Singapore where Parvati works for her — told TOI that Krishna was being framed. "He looked genuinely shocked when I told him about Aarushi’s murder, minutes after her body was found.”

Other domestic helps being questioned are Vijay Mandal and Rajkumar, who works for Dr Anita Durani. Dr Rajesh Talwar is in judicial remand and his bail plea will come up for hearing on June
26.