The Delhi HC on Thursday acquitted underworld don Babloo Srivastava and his close aide Nitin Gunwant Shah, in the Lalit Suneja murder case
NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court on Thursday acquitted underworld don Babloo Srivastava and his close aide Nitin Gunwant Shah, a Mumbai based businessman, in Lalit Suneja murder case.
In July last year, a Delhi Court had sentenced Babloo and Shah to life imprisonment for killing Suneja, a Delhi-based businessman, in 1992.
Babloo is presently launched in Tihar jail while Shah is out on bail.
Reversing the trial court judgement, a Division Bench of Justice RS Sodhi and Justice PK Bhasin acquitted Babloo and Shah saying that there is nothing on record to establish that two of them had any link in the murder case.
Terming the trial court judgement as erroneous, the Bench said the trial judge had passed the order basing on assumptions that Babloo and Shah are guilty for the murder of Suneja.
Rejecting the testimony of prosecution witness Hanuman Dan, the court said, "The testimony of PW 15 (Dan) could not be relied upon as he has no knowledge about the meeting held between Babloo and Suneja."
The court also ordered that Babloo be released if there was no case pending against him.
*Following is the chronology of events in the 1992 murder case of Delhi-based businessman Lalit Suneja, in which underworld don, Babloo Srivastava and Nitin Shah was on Thursday acquitted by the Delhi High Court:
August two, 1992: Lalit Suneja, who was having some financial disputes with one of the accused Shah, is shot dead allegedly at the behest of Srivastava in east Delhi.
August four, 1992: Police arrest two co-accused namely, Manish Dixit and Manjeet Singh, in connection with the case who later confessed their complicity in the offence and named Srivastava as key conspirator.
April, 1995: The CBI gets the red corner notice issued against Srivastava who, after fleeing from the country, was wanted in four cases including the Suneja murder case.
April 21, 1995: Following the red corner notice, Srivastava is nabbed by the Interpol in Singapore and extradited to India.
September one, 1995: The probe agency brings Srivastava to India to face the trial.
December 20, 1995: Police file chargesheet against five persons, Srivastava, Manjeet Singh, Virendra Pant, Nitin Shah and Manish Dixit, under section 302 (murder), 120-B (criminal conspiracy) and 34 (common intention) of the IPC.
July three, 2006: Additional Sessions Judge Rajinder Kumar convicts Srivastava and Shah for conspiring to kill Suneja. However, the court acquits accused Manjeet Singh.
July 10, 2006: Srivastava and Shah file appeal in the Delhi High Court against their conviction.
January 23, 2007: HC begins hearing in the appeal.
January 31, 2007: HC reserves its verdict in the case.
February 22, 2007: HC acquits Srivastava and Shah, overturning the trial court judgement.
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