New Delhi: In seperate orders, the Delhi high court recently dealt with cases relating to murder of two Delhi University students that grabbed headlines in 2009 and 2011. In the 2011 case of murder of DU student Radhika Tanwar, the HC upheld the conviction and life term awarded to the convict for the murder in Satya Niketan area of south Delhi’s Dhaula Kuan. The second case resulted in the high court acquitting three men who were sentenced to life term by a trial court for murdering Nikita Singh, a 21-year-old DU student in 2009. The trio were arrested for killing Nikita, who was shot on her forehead in September. Nikita: No clear proof saves accused The Delhi high court gave different orders while dealing with cases relating to murder of two Delhi University students that grabbed headlines in 2009 and 2011. A bench of Justices Mukta Gupta and Anish Dayal decided both the appeals. In case of Radhika Tanwar, the prosecution submitted that the convict, Vijay Saini alias Ram Singh, stalked her and when she rejected his advances, he shot her using a country-made pistol on a foot-overbridge on March 8, 2011 Dismissing Saini’s appeal, the HC noted the death of the deceased was “clearly homicidal in nature caused due to firearm injury” and the motive behind the crime was “also evident.” The court was informed that the appellant had fired one bullet at the back of the deceased resulting in her death. “Even though there were no direct eye witnesses at the point of shooting the deceased, the evidence of the two witnesses was consistent wherein both had heard a sound of a fire shot and both had seen the girl on the ramp of the flyover and while one had seen a boy standing next to her with something hidden under his shirt other had seen a boy running away with pistol in his hand,” HC noted. It recorded that a few people from her locality had even beaten up Saini a few years before the incident for stalking and teasing the girl. In the 2009 case of Nikita Singh, the HC said that “on the basis of the discussion and analysis, there is no evidence available on record on the basis of which the appellants can be proven guilty beyond reasonable doubt for the murder of the deceased and, therefore, the conviction and the order on sentence thereon passed by the trial court cannot be sustained and is set aside”. Nikita’s body was found in a poly bag from a farmhouse in Mundka village. It allowed the appeals of Yashu, Vineet and Sunil Kumar, flagging the absence of proof regarding the motive. It said the mere statement of the victim’s father that there was a family dispute with one of the accused regarding property, without any further corroboration, cannot be taken as credible motive.
Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/hc-upholds-life-term-for-2011-murder-of-delhi-university-girl/articleshow/95240144.cms