Aarushi case: Court rejects defence request to summon 13 witnesses

A court trying the Aarushi-Hemraj double murder case Saturday rejected the defence counsel's request to summon the then CBI joint director Arun Kumar and 12 other witnesses included in the original list but not brought to depose, the lawyer said.

Defence counsel Manoj Sisodia said that he made the request since the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had submitted the list of 141 witnesses but produced only 39 for testimony.

"The 12 witnesses whom we have requested the court to summon are from the original list of the CBI. We have added one additional name the then joint director, CBI Arun Kumar who claimed (Aarushi's parents) Talwars innocent at that time.

"But the court rejected our application. The order came late at 5.30 p.m. and the contents could not be known. On next date (Monday), we shall apply for the certified copy and then initiate our move," he said.

Sisodia said that the court has ordered to depose the culprits - the Talwar couple - to make a statement under section 313 of the Criminal Procedure Code. "The next step would be taken only after seeing the contents on Monday," he added.

The cross examination of the witness has already been concluded and now the defence has to present its evidence for which the it submitted application to summon 12 people for testimony. But the court asked the Talwars to depose and adjourned the hearing.

Aarushi, 14, was found murdered at her parents' Noida residence May 16, 2008. The body of Hemraj was found the next day on the terrace of the house.