Hearing in Khairlanji case to resume tomorrow

Nagpur, Jun 10 (UNI) The hearing in to the case pertaining to last year's killing of four members of a Dalit family by villagers in Khairlanji in Bhandara district in Vidarbha region of Maharashtra will resume tomorrow.

First Ad Hoc Judge and First Additional Sessions Judge S S Das in Bhandara, who is hearing the case, had last adjourned the hearing till May five and fixed the next dates of hearing from June 11 to 15 and from July 9 to 13.

The hearing had to be adjourned after a prosecution witness, Mukesh Asaram Pusam, fainted in the courtroom while deposing on May four. Mr Pusam could not take the stand the next day also as he remained under treatment in hospital.

The hearing in the case began on May three with the deposition of a 'formal witness' (person who assisted the investigation), sectional engineer of Public Works Department (PWD) Tarachand Dandare, who had prepared the maps of various sites related to the incident.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has filed a chargesheet under sections 120 (B), 302, 449 and 201 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), and sections 3, 2 and 6 of the Atrocities Act against 11 accused in the case. Earlier, 36 persons who had been arrested in connection with the case were set free as CBI did not file any charges against them due to lack of evidence.

Surekha Bhotmange (45), daughter Priyanka (18), and sons Roshan (23) and Sudhir (21) were lynched by a mob in Khairlanji late night on September 29 last, over a land dispute.

UNI