Court orders recording of evidence sans accused

Usually, in such cases, the court, after declaring the accused proclaimed offender, consigns the court file to the record room and re-opens the case.

In an unprecedented order, a city court on Thursday asked the recording of prosecution evidence in the absence of the accused, who was declared "proclaimed offender" as he was absconding after killing his wife.

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Additional Sessions Judge Reena Singh Nag, considering the prosecution plea that the depositions of key witnesses could be recorded even in the absence of the accused, issued summons to the father and the brother of the victim Baby who was burnt to death by her husband Narender Giri.

"Usually, in such cases, the court, after declaring the accused proclaimed offender, consigns the court file to the record room and re-opens the case after the arrest of the offender, said Public prosecutor said.

The ASJ issued summons under section 299 (recording of evidence) of the Criminal Procedure Code to Harbans and Ajeet, father and brother of the victim respectively.

Earlier, the court had declared Giri, a resident of Ghazipur in Uttar Pradesh, "proclaimed offender" as the police could not arrest him.

As per the prosecution, Giri, at the time of the offence, was living at Kartar Nagar area of north-east Delhi with her wife and two minor children.

On the night of April four, 2004, the accused, who was a dipsomaniac, came back to his home and started beating her wife following a verbal duel on a trivial issue.

On being objected, Giri got enraged and burnt Baby by pouring acid over her. And, in the process their five-year-old son Rakesh also received burn injuries.

Later, Baby succumbed to her injuries at a city hospital and Giri has been evading arrest since then.