They pleaded for their own defence

The mother-daughter duo — Leena and Deepti Devasthali — who escaped the noose for allegedly killing Pune-based orthopedic surgeon Dr Deepak Mahajan, defended their own case.

The mother-daughter duo — Leena and Deepti Devasthali — who escaped the noose for allegedly killing Pune-based orthopedic surgeon Dr Deepak Mahajan, defended their own case.

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Although the Bombay High Court offered them lawyers, they turned down the offer alleging that lawyers tend to “manipulate truth”. The court finally appointed an amicus curie (friend of court) to ensure that no point — which could possibly favour the accused — is left out during the hearing.

Deepti — the daughter, who had allegedly dressed up as Jassi from the famous television serial Jassi Jaisi Koi Nahi — argued for nearly four weeks to prove that she and her mother neither kidnapped Dr Mahajan nor kill him.

When the prosecution said that the accused led the police to the Katraj Ghat section of Pune — Satara road where Dr Mahajan’s hacked body parts were found, Deepti argued that the police was already present the spot along with media when the accused reached there with the police.

The mother-daughter duo challenged the genuineness of the panchanama.

They also questioned the authenticity of the DNA test done to identify the body parts as Dr Mahajan’s, as the first test result was inconclusive.