Airhostess suicide case: Cops seek removal of adverse remarks

Seeking expunction of adverse remarks by trial court against it in the former airhostess suicide case, the Delhi Police today told the High Court that they amounted to "destroying the prosecution case before it begins."
Appearing before Justice G P Mittal, Additional Solicitor General Siddharth Luthra read out certain remarks from the trial court's order on framing of charges against former Haryana Minister Gopal Kanda and his employee Aruna Chadha.
"The trial court's remarks that the investigating agency has chosen not to unearth further circumstantial or other credible evidence on this aspect to reach the truth (with regard to the sexual exploitation of the victim) is like destroying the case of the prosecution before it begins.

"What more evidence can we bring to support our case," he said while pointing to the statement of various witnesses collected and the documentary evidence gathered by the police.
Luthra was arguing for a plea moved by Delhi Police objecting to the trial court's remark dubbing the probe as "tainted and stinking" and seeking that the adverse remarks be expunged.
Luthra also said that if the trial court felt that more was needed to be done, it could have directed for further investigation.

The trial court had in its May 10 order said, "It appears that taking a cue from the victim's postmortem report dated August 6, 2012, the investigation progressed towards ascertaining sexual exploitation of the deceased. The disclosure statement of accused Aruna Chadha was recorded on August 10, 2012. The statement of the doctor (gyanecologist) was also recorded on August 12, 2012.

"Thereafter, it appears that for reasons best known to the investigating agency, further investigation in this direction has not been conducted to collect further evidence."
The former air hostess, who was earlier employed with Kanda's MLDR airlines, was found dead on August 5 last year at her Ashok Vihar residence in North West Delhi. In her August 4 suicide note, she had said she was ending her life due to "harassment" by Kanda, 46, and Chadha, 40.