Aarushi-Hemraj murder case: SC accepts CBI appeal against parents’ release

Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has challenged in Supreme Court (SC) the Allahabad High Court order of acquitting Rajesh and Nupur Talwar in the double murder case of Aarushi Talwar (their daughter) and Hemraj Banjade (their house help) in May this year. SC has accepted CBI’s appeal and has agreed to re-open the case.

A panel of three judges constituting of Justices Ranjan Gogoi, Navin Sinha and K M Joseph, said that the appeal will be heard along with the petition filed by Hemraj’s wife.

Aarushi-Hemraj Murder Case Overview:

In October 2017, the Allahabad High Court had acquitted the parents (Rajesh and Nupur Talwar, who are also dentists by profession) of all charges. The High court had stated that the prosecution was unable to establish its hypothesis which claimed that the parents were the ‘only’ ones to be present at home, when the murders were committed. Justices AK Mishra and BK Narayana, in a 273 page order said, “Suspicion, however grave it may be, cannot take the place of proof and in this case, neither the circumstances nor the evidence was enough to hold them guilty.” Thus acquitting the Talwars’ of all the charges labelled by CBI. The dentist couple was kept in Ghaziabad’s Dasna jail.

On May 16, 2008, Aarushi Talwar, 14, was found dead in her room with a slit in her throat in Noida. Two days later, the body of 45 year old Hemraj (family’s live-in domestic help) was recovered from the same residential terrace. The police had initially suspected Hemraj of Aarushi’s murder. Subsequently, the then Mayawati government handed over the investigation to the CBI because of the many goof ups done the state police.

On November 25, 2013, the Talwars were found guilty of double murders and were sentenced to life imprisonment by a CBI court in Ghaziabad.

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