Aarushi case: CBI forms new probe team

It has been 15 months since investigation began in the horrific murder of Noida teenager Aarushi Talwar—found soaked in blood on a Saturday morning in her own bed, a few feet away from her parents’ bedroom, report Abhishek Sharan and Kapil Datta.

It has been 15 months since investigation began in the horrific murder of Noida teenager Aarushi Talwar—found soaked in blood on a Saturday morning in her own bed, a few feet away from her parents’ bedroom.

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And after running through a series of dead-ends and goof-ups, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), probing the murders of Aarushi and domestic help Hemraj Banjade, has set up a new investigating team to unravel the case.

The new team’s task is to find material and corroborative evidence—including the crime weapons and the victims’ missing mobile phones—to prove its charges against the case’s three “identified” suspects.

It will also find out who switched Aarushi’ vaginal swabs and how medical papers, including a pathology register related to her autopsy, disappeared.

CBI’s spokesperson Harsh Bhal told HT, “The new probe team will be led by CBI’s Superintendent of Police (Dehradun) Neelabh Kishore.”

“The probe will be supervised by Special Director SC Sinha (CBI headquarters) and Joint Director (Luck now) Javed Ahmed.” Sinha and Ahmed will select members of the team.

Probe by UP govt

The Uttar Pradesh government on Wednesday ordered a high-level probe to find out who among three Noida district hospital doctors was responsible for the switching of Aarushi's vaginal swabs and the destruction/tampering with original medical papers.

The doctors are former chief medical superintendent Dr. SC Singhal, pathologist Ritcha Saxena and autopsy doctor Dr. Sunil Dohre and pathology.

HT had on Sunday and Wednesday reported the doctors' versions.

They blamed each other for the switching of the swabs and the disappearance of the autopsy’s pathology register.