Allahabad HC issues notice to Rajesh Talwar in Aarushi case

Allahabad, Apr 3: The Allahabad High Court on Tuesday, Apr 3 issued notice to dentist Rajesh Talwar, facing trial in the murder of his daughter Aarushi, on an application filed by the CBI challenging the trial court's decision to extend the bail granted to the accused.

Justice Bala Krishna Narayana passed the order on an appeal filed by the CBI challenging the order of a special CBI court at Ghaziabad dated Mar 14, 2012, whereby the bail of Talwar, who along with his wife Nupur is facing trial in the case, had been extended.

The probe agency's contention was that the trial court had erred in "extending the bail granted to Talwar, treating it as a regular one though he had been granted only an interim bail and was now required to obtain regular bail", according to the CBI's counsel Anurag Khanna.

Issuing notice to Talwar, the court fixed May 7 as the next date of hearing in the matter. In its closure report submitted before the Ghaziabad court last year, the CBI had not named the Talwars as an accused in the case.

However, the court had decided to go ahead with the trial observing that there was "enough evidence" against the dentist couple. Aarushi (14), was found dead inside her Noida residence in May, 2008 with her throat slit and the body of the Talwars' domestic servant Hemraj was recovered from the terrace hours later. An outcry against the shoddy investigation by Uttar Pradesh police had led to the then Mayawati government in Uttar Pradesh handing over the case to the CBI.

PTI