Anjali death: 2 suspects noticed something stuck under car, police tell Delhi court

The investigating officer (IO) of the case told the court that police have recovered six separate CCTV footages, and one shows that two of the four men in the car got off to observe something under the vehicle, and were aware that something was stuck

Two of the accused in the gruesome Sultanpuri accident realised that something was stuck under the car and briefly got off to inspect the vehicle but still chose to drive on, Delhi Police told a court on Monday, citing CCTV footage.

A video grab from CCTV footage of the Maruti Suzuki Baleno car, which hit 20-year-oild Anjali Kumari in the early hours of January 1, when she was on her way home on her scooter. Anjali’s leg got stuck in the underside of the car, and she was dragged for nearly three hours on a stretch of over 14 kilometres. (PTI)

A Maruti Suzuki Baleno car hit 20-year-oild Anjali Kumari in the early hours of January 1, when she was on her way home on her scooter. Anjali’s leg got stuck in the underside of the car, and she was dragged for nearly three hours on a stretch of over 14 kilometres. The accused in the case have been booked for culpable homicide not amounting to murder, among other charges.

On Monday, metropolitan magistrate Sanya Dalal was apprised of the status of the investigation following seven-day custodial interrogation of the accused, with police lending credence to the recovery of relevant CCTV footage from areas where the car was being driven.

The investigating officer (IO) of the case told the court that police have recovered six separate CCTV footages, and one shows that two of the four men in the car got off to observe something under the vehicle, and were aware that something was stuck.

The IO opted to keep the identity of these two accused confidential for now.

At this point, the judge inquired why the CCTV footages were being recovered one by one, and not at the same time. The IO replied that the accused were initially not cooperating with the investigation. “We had to take them along the route first separately then together to formulate the timeline of the event and retrace the exact route that they took,” said the officer.

Meanwhile, one of the accused in the case, Ashutosh, who owned the car, moved a bail application, with his counsel arguing that all offences made out against him are bailable offences and that his client has been cooperating with the police in the investigation. The court agreed to hear the bail petition on Tuesday, and asked the police to file a reply to Ashutosh’s plea.

At present, six people, including Ashutosh, are in custody. Another accused in the case, Ankush, got bail on Saturday -- a day after he surrendered before police.