Seeking conviction of the accused involved in the kidnapping and murder of 13-year-old Aditya Ranka, son of a diamond broker, proved to be tough for the prosecution, which slammed the police for their 'shoddy probe'.
According to police, Ranka was abducted and killed brutally by one Vrijesh Sanghvi, a friend of his cousin Himanshu. The police had alleged that Himanshu was the mastermind. The police had claimed that Himanshu and Sanghvi were into betting on cricket matches and had lost money in it. Aditya was kidnapped and ransom was demanded from his family to pay up debts.
The sessions court on Monday convicted Sanghvi on charges of kidnapping and murdering Aditya.
Aditya was initially kidnapped for money, but when Sanghvi realised that Aditya's family was approaching the police, the accused got instructions to kill him in order to close the matter.
The prosecution claimed that the police probe was shoddy and the very basics of performing a proper and authenticated panchnama was done poorly.
"The police had botched up with the panchnama. The police had recovered CCTV footage of the accused with Aditya in the car, in which he looked playful in Sanghvi's company. However, the police did not authenticate the footage, which is not admissible in court," said Special Public Prosecutor Kalpana Chavan.
She added, "During trial, I sought permission from the court to get CCTV footage which clearly showed Aditya accompanying the accused in his car. We then got the footage authenticated so that they can be used as evidence in court. Also, there were several witnesses of the total 44, who had supported the prosecution's case. The prosecution was able to prove the case right from the point when the accused had picked up Aditya by convincing him for a long drive and then later murdering him. The prosecution could also prove that the accused then stashed the body in the car and dumped it on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway. This entire chain was proved with the help of CCTV footage and call data records of the accused. It was actually a tough fight for the prosecution."
Since the police did not provide sufficient evidence against Himanshu, he was acquitted in the case.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Aditya Ranka, 13-year-old son of diamond broker, abducted and killed
- Cousin Himanshu, suspected to be mastermind, acquitted due to lack of evidence
- Cousin’s friend Vrijesh Sanghvi convicted
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