Court acquits 5 in kidnapping case, slams police probe

Additional Sessions Judge (ASJ) Nisha Saxena let off Uttar Pradesh native Usha and her three brothers and a sister-in -law, who were charged with kidnapping a 16-year-old girl and confining her in village for five days in 2008, saying the testimonies of witnesses, including that of the girl was not convincing.

"Testimonies (of witnesses) are not cogent, convincing and truthful. Their testimonies are full of inconsistencies and incongruities. No proper investigation has been conducted in the matter. The probe has been done in a lackadaisical and negligent manner by the investigating officers," it said.

Acquitting Usha, Pinki, Dinesh, Vishnu and Satish, the court said they cannot be convicted on the basis of evidence on record as there are several loose ends in the story of the police.

"Careful marshalling and scrutiny of entire evidence on record clearly leads to irresistible conclusion that on the basis of evidence on record the accused cannot be convicted. There are so many loose ends in the prosecution version that it would be quite unsafe to base conviction of the accused on such quality of the evidence. All accused are accordingly acquitted of the offences charged with," it said.

According to the prosecution, on January 30, 2008, when the girl was fetching water near her house in north-east Delhi, her neighbour Usha asked her to accompany to the market for purchasing some household articles.

It said the girl accompanied Usha who took her to Satish's house where she handed her over to the other four accused and they took her to Ghaziabad. After drinking tea laced with sedatives, she felt unconscious and when she regained her senses, she found herself in a village. (MORE)