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Stalkers convicted of murdering Nikita Tomar
Tomar was shot dead at point blank range in broad daylight right outside her college in Faridabad by the men who were stalking her, with the shooting captured in CCTV footage.
A fast-track court in Faridabad on Wednesday held two men, Touseef and Rehaan, guilty of murder in the Nikita Tomar case within five months of the incident that shocked the National Capital Region and brought women’s safety into sharp focus.
Tomar was shot dead at point blank range in broad daylight right outside her college in Faridabad by the men who were stalking her, with the shooting captured in CCTV footage.
The court of additional sessions judge Sartaj Baswana convicted the two of murder, kidnapping, homicide and conspiracy. The quantum of sentence will be pronounced on Friday, said advocate Adal Singh Rawat, counsel for the victim’s family. Prime accused Touseef was also held guilty under the Arms Act. However, Azruddin, the third accused in the case, who allegedly supplied the murder weapon, was acquitted.
The 21-year-old victim was shot dead on October 26, leading to her family alleging that the murder was linked to “love jihad” as Touseef had been stalking her, pressuring her to marry him and change her religion. “Love jihad” is a term popularised by right-wing groups alleging a conspiracy by Muslim men to lure Hindu women into marriage for the purpose of changing their religion.
The court on Wednesday found Touseef and Rehaan guilty under Sections 302, 366, 511, 120B/34 of the IPC. Touseef was also convicted under Section 27/1 of the Arms Act.
Faridabad police tweeted the timeline of the case and the verdict issued by the court with the hashtag “#justicefornikita”.
“Nikita Tomar murder (26/10/2020, accused Touseef arrested the same evening, 27/10/2020 Rehaan arrested, 28/10/2020 Azruddin arrested, 6/11/2020 challan produced in court, 24/3/2021 verdict announced, 26/3/2021 sentence to be pronounced,” the tweet said. Asked to comment on the case, a spokesperson for Faridabad Police said an official statement would be released on Friday after the sentencing.
During the course of hearing by the fast-track court, production of evidence started on December 1. The counsel for the victim’s family said 55 witnesses were produced by the prosecution while two were produced by the defence. The court heard the case twice a week and after holding arguments on March 22 and March 23, announced the verdict on March 24.
The family of the victim expressed satisfaction at the verdict and demanded that the accused be given maximum punishment for the crime. “The investigation conducted by the police and the speed with which the case was heard by the fast-track court has ensured justice for Nikita,” said Rawat, counsel for the family and also a maternal uncle of the victim.
The failed abduction bid and subsequent murder of the young woman was caught on CCTV cameras. The footage showed Touseef and Rehaan trying to push Tomar into their car as she stepped out of Aggarwal College after writing an exam. The footage also showed that as the accused could not push Tomar into the car due to her resistance, Touseef shot at her and escaped with his accomplice.
Fingerprints of the accused were matched during the investigation from three samples that included the getaway car, the pistol used for the murder, and the woman’s arm.
