DNA profile enough for CBI to prove Kotkhai accused guilty

Bhanu P Lohumi

Tribune News Service

Shimla, June 28

The lone accused in the Kotkhai minor rape and murder case Anil Kumar alias Nilu might have backtracked from his statement but the CBI is equipped with sufficient scientific and other evidences against him.

The DNA profile of Nilu was found to be consistent with the DNA profile generated from the semen detected from the inner wear of the victim and also matched with the DNA extracted from the bottle of liquor recovered from the crime spot.

The samples drawn from the spot of crime included school uniform (kurta, soil-soaked salwar, blood, soil-soaked chunni, shamiz, under garments, coloured plastic cloth, shoes, a hair clip and sweater), liquor bottle, broken plastic bottle, empty packets of pan masala and an empty poly bag.

Besides soil samples collected from the crime spot and lifted from the body parts of the victim, the samples of bite marks on the body, vaginal swabs and blood samples were also collected. The DNA profile generated from other samples was found to be consistent with each other and DNA profile of the victim.

The 28-page chargesheet mentioned the statements of 59, including students, teachers of the school where Gudiya was studying, villagers, doctors, forensic experts, the police and the witnesses, who saw the accused in the area before and after the crime was committed.

Post-mortem report

The report of the post-mortem conducted at the IGMC, Shimla, on July 7 last year revealed that the victim died due to cumulative effect of homicidal smothering and manual strangulation during forcible, penetrative sexual assault and the time of death was assessed within two hours of last meal which implies that the victim was killed on July 4.

Torture by cops

While Suraj, one of the six accused earlier arrested by SIT constituted by the DGP on July 12, died in the police custody at Kotkhai on July 18, the other five, Asheesh Chauhan, Rajinder Singh, Lokjan, Deepak and Subash Bisht, were found innocent. Deepak alias Deepu made a false confession in the police custody due to torture and threat, revealed his narco test. The CBI chargesheet mentioned that the police resorted to harsh steps during the custodial interrogation without any substantial evidence.

Silent features of the case

Maternal uncles of the victim Rajender Singh and Devi Ram found the body in the Halaila forest on July 6 and informed the police. The clothes and belongings of the victim were found on the spot and only one of her hair clips was found near the road connecting Mahasu and Dandi.

The case

The minor victim went missing on July 4 on her way home from the school, two days after her body was recovered from the Halaila forest on July 6. The post-mortem report revealed that she was raped.