Tuesday, December 30, 2014

Nupur and Rajesh Talwar; India; Another moving story by Shree Paradkar marking the year that Aarushi's parents have been in jail. "Where is the justice in innocent people sitting behind bars?, Nupur's father asks. (Must read. HL);


STORY: "Aarushi's parents have been in jail for a year," by Shree Paradkar, published by NDTV on November 26, 2014.  (Shree Paradkar is Nupur Talwar's cousin and Deputy Editor, Multimedia Desk at the Toronto Star.  In a stinging indictment of India’s law-enforcement and legal systems,  (several of her articles on the case have been published on this Blog) she has been chronicling the farcical investigation and trial that led to what she, and many others,  believe is the wrongful conviction of a murdered girl’s parents. The case has made headlines around the world.)

GIST: "It has been one year. One year since my cousin Nupur Talwar and her husband Rajesh were convicted and sent to jail for crimes they did not commit. One year since a judge decided that Rajesh had, in a fit of temper, killed his 13-year-old daughter Aarushi and the 45-year-old cook Hemraj in May 2008 for being in a sexual relationship. And that Nupur somehow helped him (The judgment is not clear about her role). Nupur's mother and mine are sisters.........But how does a court of law convict based on speculation?"Where is justice?" asks my Uncle Chitnis, Nupur's father. "Where is the justice in innocent people sitting behind bars?" .........In May 2014, the Talwars' application for bail was rejected on the grounds that the family would be given an "expeditious hearing" instead. The language of law is a wonderfully elastic system of communication. It can be laughably arcane as the Talwars' judgment showed us. Read the trial Judgement by CBI Court It can also be safely vague. "Expeditious" is one such term. In this case, it means the appeal has not been heard yet. To be clear: there have been no hearings. One judge said he was not taking detailed arguments, that he was only listening to bail hearings. Another is due to retire in December and is unlikely to touch such a high-profile case. "It seems like nobody wants to deal with it," says Rajesh's older brother Dinesh. The Talwars' defence counsel Tanveer Ahmed Mir, who filed a 3,000-page appeal at the High Court, tells me that cases usually take 20 to 25 years to be heard in UP. That the Talwars can at least hope to be heard before that time frame is cause for optimism. Pardon me if I don't feel the joy.........The judgment provided a "chain of (26) circumstances" that, the judge said, proved the Talwars guilty. Click here to read 26 reasons the Talwars are NOT guilty Every link in the so-called chain should point unerringly to the guilt of the accused. In this case, the chain does not pass that test. It breaks down - not in one or two - but in each of those circumstances. Some sections of the media uncritically published 26 reasons the Talwars are guilty. If only Rajesh and Nupur had not been so idealistic, so naive. Even after Aarushi's murder, and despite the shameful reputation of  the UP Police, they both genuinely believed if they fought for justice they would get it. For a year and a half after the murders, they both still had their passports. Only the innocent would choose to stay and fight when flight was an option." 

The entire story can be found at:

http://www.ndtv.com/article/blog/aarushi-s-parents-have-been-in-jail-for-a-year-626169

 PUBLISHER'S NOTE: 

Dear Reader. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog. We are following this case.
 
I have added a search box for content in this blog which now encompasses several thousand posts. The search box is located  near the bottom of the screen just above the list of links. I am confident that this powerful search tool provided by "Blogger" will help our readers and myself get more out of the site.

The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at:

http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith

Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at:
 
http://smithforensic.blogspot.ca/2013/12/the-charles-smith-award-presented-to_28.html
 
I look forward to hearing from readers at:

hlevy15@gmail.com.

Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog;