HC raps prosecution for weakening case

NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court on Wednesday held that the public prosecutor’s deliberate laxity was responsible for the weakening of the Jessica Lal murder case which led to the acquittal of the accused.

The division bench of Justice RS Sodhi and Justice PK Bhasin observed that the public prosecutor has been very generous with the witnesses who turned hostile or retracted their statements in the court. The bench also remarked that due to the public prosecutor’s mishandling of witnesses during the trial, the accused have been let off. “Why did you not confront the statements given by Bina Ramani and Shayan Munshi before the police in the court,” questioned the judges. Both Ramani and Munshi had changed their statements in the court.

In her statement before the police, Ramani had said that she had seen Jessica fall down and Manu Sharma keeping his pistol in his pocket. She had also told the police that Shayan had told her that he had seen Manu Sharma shoot Jessica and then fleeing. However, in the court, all she said was that she had seen someone like Manu Sharma running out and she was not sure if it was him. The court asked the prosecution why this statement was not confronted. “You created a passage through which the accused walked free,” was the sarcastic remark by the bench.

Earlier the bench praised Ramani and her husband George Mailhot for their courage. Of the 200 odd people present at the party, only these two had the courage to come as witnesses in the court. The court added that Mailhot, despite his age, was the only man who tried to chase the murderer.