Friday, November 11, 2011

CBI files status report today in Rajasthan High Court for Bhanwari case

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on today filed its status reports in the Rajasthan High Court in connection with the suspected kidnapping and murder of nurse Bhanwari Devi.

The Jodhpur bench of the High Court, before which the status report was filed, posted the matter for next hearing on November 14.

The bench also directed the state government to extend full-cooperation to the investigating agency and asked the CBI to report to it if the court’s order was not implemented.

The court further instructed the CBI to set up a team headed by a DIG rank officer to probe the case.

The status report in the case was filed a day after sacked Rajasthan minister Mahipal Maderna admitted that he had links with the missing nurse Bhanwari Devi. The status report was filed by the CBI in response to a habeas corpus petition filed by Bhanwari Devi’s husband Amarchand .

Maderna’s arrest now seems likely after his confession that he knew the missing nurse.

Maderna, who was quizzed for about seven hours, told the CBI sleuths that he had links with Bhanwari Devi but categorically denied any role in her kidnapping and suspected murder.

Maderna’s questioning is likely to continue today as the investigators believe that they will get more details from him about the circumstances in which the nurse went missing. The minister has also assured the CBI of his "full cooperation" in the probe.

During his interrogation, Maderna was confronted with statements of other suspects, his call records, details of his meetings with Bhanwari Devi, Sahiram and other suspects besides some recent CDs recovered by the agency in the case.

Maderna was removed from Cabinet by state’s Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on October 16 after his name cropped up in the case.

In his plea, Bhanwari's husband Amarchand had alleged that she was abducted at the behest of Maderna who denied the charge.

The call records of cell phones used by Bhanwari Devi's kidnappers indicate that suspect Sahiram was in touch with Maderana until the day she was kidnapped from Jodhpur's Bilara area on September 1. The agency suspects that the 33-year-old nurse was abducted and murdered and her body burnt.

Bhanwari was posted as Auxiliary Nurse Midwife at a sub-centre in Jaliwada village, around 120 km from Jodhpur.

CBI has recently seized a camcorder and a computer which may be holding vital clues about her disappearance and the agency has sought help of Central Forensic Science Laboratory as well as private experts to retrieve the data.

Officials suspect that the camera and computer might have been used to film and store some controversial footage which could hold vital clues about the reasons behind the disappearance of Bhanwari.

The CBI, on November 7, had questioned the kin of a Rajasthan Congress MLA and a suspended policeman in connection with the disappearance of Bhanwari Devi. The agency had interrogated Indira Bishnoi, sister of Malkhan Singh Bishnoi, MLA from Luni.

A few audio clips of purported conversation of Bhanwari Devi with Sohanlal, one of the accused, and Indira Devi, had now been released to media.

Indira had alleged that Bhanwari Devi wanted a "settlement" with Maderna and she had approached even Pali MP Badri Ram Jakhar.

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