Ankita Bhandari murder case: Cops say demolishing resort destroyed crucial evidence
Former DGP Aloke B Lal said, "In this case, parts of the resort were demolished by bulldozers in the middle of the night with no prior notice. Important evidence must have been destroyed in the unexpected action."
FollowFormer Uttarakhand DGP Aloke B Lal claims the rush to demolish the resort in question in the Ankita Bhandari murder case destroyed vital evidence.
Various sources have claimed that evidence in the murder case was destroyed by the overnight demolishing of the resort in Bhogpur, Pauri district.
While talking to PTI on Tuesday, Lal said, "In this case, the proper procedure for demolishing the so-called illegal resort was not followed. Before any such exercise, a show-cause notice is usually issued."
In addition, he said, "In this instance, parts of the resort were demolished by bulldozers in the mid-night without any prior notice. Important evidence must have been destroyed in the unexpected action."
The administration's overzealous desire to represent itself effectively could be the primary motivation for the late-night activity. According to Lal, the action appears to have been taken to garner favour for taking swift action against the accused.
He also questioned whether the accused themselves were responsible for the devastation. The probe, he claimed, will reveal who carried out the destruction and under whose direction.
In response to the Pauri district administration's claim that videography of the resort was done on September 22 itself, two days before a bulldozer razed parts of it, and that all evidence was intact in the video footage, the former DGP stated that videography could not record such forensic evidence as strands of hair, sweat, saliva, or sperm drops, which would have been critical in establishing relevant facts.
He added that news reports that mattresses from rooms allegedly set on fire by an angry mob of locals were discovered floating in a pool at the resort exacerbated his concerns about evidence destruction.
"In such cases, mattresses may contain vital evidence such as strands of hair or sperm drops," the former DGP said.
He wondered where the footage from the resort's CCTV cameras ended up. This will contain crucial evidence establishing what occurred before the alleged scuffle.
Another factor casting doubt on the situation is the delay in transferring the case from revenue police to regular police. According to Lal, people may interpret it as a deliberate attempt to protect the guilty.
"The revenue police are both untrained and unequipped to handle murder investigations. Why was the case left unsolved for four days? Murder investigations are time-sensitive. Delays result in the loss of evidence, making the case more difficult to solve," he said.Â
"During my tenure at the Police Headquarters in 2001-2002, I wrote to the government requesting an end to the stone-age revenue police system, but it still exists in Uttarakhand," he said.
Lal insisted that regular police officers immediately replace it throughout the state.
However, the former DGP expressed hope that the SIT, led by DIG P Renuka Devi, would investigate the case thoroughly and uncover the truth.
(With inputs from PTI)
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