A city court today granted interim bail for 10 days to an associate of suspended IPS officer R K Sharma, the prime accused in the murder of journalist Shivani Bhatnagar in 1999, says a Press Trust of India (PTI) report in the Hindu.
Additional Sessions Judge, Rajender Kumar Shastri, released Satya Prakash, also an accused in the scribe’s murder, on interim bail against a personal bond of Rs 20,000 and a surety of the same amount.
Some details:
Earlier, Prakash’s counsel requested the court to release him on interim bail as he had to get his children admitted to school. Prakash’s wife was unable to take the children to school as she was not in good health, the counsel said.
Taking into account the reasons cited by the defence, the court acceded to this plea and granted bail to Prakash. It also directed him not to influence witnesses or tamper with evidence during the bail period.
The prosecution has alleged that Prakash had arranged meetings between Sharma and Pradeep, the man who allegedly shot and killed Shivani eight years ago.
The court also recorded the statements of the seventh defence witness Hari Om Sharma, who was today cross-examined by the prosecution.
Hari Om reportedly used to live in Gurgaon with Sri Bhagwan, another accused in the case, and was an acquaintance of the suspended police officer.
He was cited as a witness by the defence, which is seeking to counter the prosecution’s claim that phone call details obtained during the investigation had pointed to complicity between Bhagwan and Sharma. It hopes to do this by proving that they were records of conversations between Hari Om and Sharma.
Shivani, a journalist of the Indian Express, was found murdered in her Navkunj Apartment flat in east Delhi on January 23, 1999.
The prosecution has alleged that Sharma conspired with Pradeep Sharma, Satya Prakash, Ved Prakash Sharma, Ved alias Kalu and Sri Bhagwan, to murder Shivani as he wanted to end his relationship with her.
The court wrapped up the recording of statements of the accused on April 30 and the statements of defence witnesses are now being recorded.
