SC questions CBI over fresh evidence in Aarushi murder case

The Supreme Court on Monday questioned the Central Bureau of Investigation as to how it suddenly woke up to detect fresh evidence against dentists Rajesh and Nupur Talwar after claiming there was no evidence against them in the murder case of their 14-year-old daughter Aarushi and domestic help Hemraj.

"How has the CBI has become active? You have filed pages after pages in the trial court submitting that there was nothing against them. Now how could you assume that there is evidence against them? Is it merely because the trial court has taken cognisance?" the apex court asked Solicitor General Gopal Subramaniam.

A bench of justices B Sudarshan Reddy and S S Nijjar at one stage also asked the couple as to what was their hesitation in responding to the summons issued by the trial court to examine their alleged culpability in the murder case of May 2008.

The apex court after hearing the arguments at length said it would examine the validity of the trial court's order issuing summons to the Noida-based couple on July 12. It asked both the parties to file, if necessary, their written submissions by then.

Aarushi was found dead with her throat slit at her Noida residence on the outskirts of Delhi on May 16, 2008 and the body of their domestic help, Hemraj, was found on the terrace of her house the next day. On March 19, this year, the Supreme Court had stayed during a special hearing the Allahabad High Court order that had refused to set aside a special Ghaziabad CBI court direction, summoning the couple in the case.

The CBI after probing the blind murder case for over a two-and-half years had filed its closure report in the case in the Ghaziabad Special CBI court, saying it had been unable to find out any evidence to prosecute the Talwars.

But the trial court had rejected the closure report, saying there was enough prima facie material in the agency's report to put the couple on trial for their alleged involvement in the twin murders and had issued summons to them to face trial.

Rajesh and Nupur Talwar had subsequently gone to the Allahabad High Court, which had dismissed their pleas to quash the trial court summons and the proceedings initiated against them.