Ryan murder: CCTV footage helped Kumar secure bail, says victim’s lawyer

Another important point in Kumar’s favour was the statement of three student witnesses. They said the juvenile accused had told them beforehand that the parent-teacher meeting will be cancelled and exams will be postponed

Bus conductor Ashok Kumar, who was arrested by the Gurgaon police on charges of murdering eight-year-old Pradhyumn Thakur on the premises of Ryan International School, Bhondsi, was granted bail on Tuesday after the Gurgaon police’s theory of him being seen last with Pradhyumn was demolished by the CBI.

First accused Ashok Kumar’s father Amir Chand looked relieved on Tuesday when his son was granted bail after 73 days in the Ryan murder case. However, he said he will not rest as the CBI has not given his son a clean chit. (Parveen Kumar/HT Photo)

The CCTV footage played before the court showed that the juvenile, arrested later by the CBI, left the washroom after Kumar, said Sushil Tekriwal, lawyer of Barun Chandra Thakur, Pradhyumn’s father.

Mohit Verma, Kumar’s lawyer, said, “The weapon theory proved vital in securing Kumar’s bail. The Gurgaon police had arrested Kumar and recovered a knife from the toilet. In the police report, it was mentioned that the knife was bought from Agra, kept in the school bus toolkit, taken into the toilet and used in the crime. But, the juvenile accused reportedly took the CBI sleuths to Anaj Mandi, Sohna, from where he allegedly bought the knife. The juvenile accused also confessed the same and his statement was recorded.”

The Gurgaon police had arrested Kumar on September 8, the very evening Pradhyumn was found dead with his throat slit. But after the CBI took over the probe, the agency on November 7 detained a Class 11 as the prime suspect.

“The CCTV footage, which was played before the court on November 16, had an important role in Kumar’s bail. The footage showed the juvenile accused in the corridor, his interactions with the victim, him entering the toilet and his exit after Kumar. The footage was seen several times to check the timings and records of both the accused. Kumar benefitted from this,” Tekriwal said.

Another important point in Kumar’s favour was the statement of witnesses recorded by the CBI. The Gurgaon police had recorded statements of two students against Kumar whereas CBI recorded statements of three students against the juvenile accused.

The three students in their statements said that the juvenile had told them beforehand that the parent-teacher meeting will be cancelled and exams will be postponed, the lawyer claimed.

“There were major differences in the statements recorded separately by both investigation agencies. The two students,whose statements were recorded by the police, said they were changing out of their taekwondo costume when they saw Kumar enter the toilet. They, however, said they did not notice any blood stains on Kumar’s clothes,” said advocate Verma.

The statement by Harpal, the gardener, was also different in the police and CBI records.

Also, the arrest and confession of the juvenile accused, his first statement recorded by Gurgaon police as a witness and later by the CBI as an accused helped Kumar secure bail.

However, till the time the CBI doesn’t file a chargesheet in the case, Kumar will be deemed an accused as the agency is yet to complete its probe.