A day after Vikas Barala, son of Haryana Bharatiya Janata Party president Subhash Barala, and his friend and co-accused in the Varnika Kundu stalking case Ashish Kumar were sent to judicial custody for 14 days, it has come to light that the politically influential family is not keen on applying for his bail, given the media scrutiny and public outcry.
The BJP leader reportedly made it clear to defence counsel Surya Prakash on Saturday night that the family wanted a fair investigation in the case and isn’t keen on applying for bail as of now.
Confirming the development, the lawyer told HT on Sunday: “Given all the pressure that has built up in the matter, the family feels it’s better for the facts to come out in the open by allowing the police to conduct an impartial investigation. I spoke to Subhash Ji last night over the phone. There are no plans to file a bail plea for the two as of now.”
‘Being made scapegoat’
Prakash said he hadn’t had a chance to have a detailed conversation with either of the accused, except for when Vikas briefly mentioned to him in court on Saturday that he is innocent and being falsely implicated.
“He said, ‘Mujhe bali ka bakra banaya ja raha hai (I am being made a scapegoat)’. That’s it,” the lawyer told HT. Moreover, Prakash said whenever a bail plea is flied in court, it will be for both Vikas and Ashish.
{{/usCountry}}“He said, ‘Mujhe bali ka bakra banaya ja raha hai (I am being made a scapegoat)’. That’s it,” the lawyer told HT. Moreover, Prakash said whenever a bail plea is flied in court, it will be for both Vikas and Ashish.
{{/usCountry}}“Basically, we don’t want to interfere with police probe,” said the lawyer. “Once it’s complete, we will review the decision (of not applying for bail), as discussed with the family.”
Vikas, 23, and Ashish, 27, were held for allegedly stalking Varnika Kundu, a 29-year-old DJ, late last Friday night. A case for stalking, drink driving and wrongful restraint was registered against them. They were later released on bail.
The next four days saw the case making national headlines. The police were accused of buckling under pressure and not adding the charge of attempt to kidnap, as alleged by Varnika, against the accused.