GIST: "You've seen the headlines and heard the talking heads already: 'No one killed Aarushi'; 'If the Talwars didn't do it, who did?' and the philosophical, 'We are no closer to the truth'. Well, here is some news: we are closer than you think. And it's there in Thursday's Allahabad High Court judgment. Just turn to page 227 and begin reading — and do turn the television down. This is the story of how the most crucial piece of evidence in the Aarushi-Hemraj murders was tampered with by the CBI. Had the agency not done this, and then covered it up, the Talwars would never even have had to go to trial. What makes it worse is that this wasn't some kind of circumstance, or testimony, it was a piece of physical evidence, forensically examined. The article in question is a purple-coloured pillow cover. It belonged to Krishna, the Talwars' compounder, who was also Hemraj's friend. It was seized by the CBI in the second week of June 2008 from Krishna's room and appeared to have suspicious blood spots on it. When it was examined by the good scientists at Hyderabad's CDFD laboratory, they confirmed that the blood belonged to Hemraj. Let's pause here. Hemraj lived in L-32 Jalvayu Vihar, the Talwars' flat. Krishna, in the servants' quarters at L-14 in the same complex. So how did Hemraj's blood travel to Krishna's room? That is the question the CBI needed to answer. But it was an inconvenient truth. The agency had no physical evidence linking the Talwars to the murders, just a perverse fantasy they were struggling to support. All the while they had been sitting on forensic proof that Krishna may have been involved. The forensic report came in November 2008, but the CBI realised only after it was well invested in proving the Talwars' guilt that it contained this information. In fact, it was Dinesh Talwar, Rajesh's brother, who made the discovery while scouring the CBI's documents late one night in Allahabad in early 2011. In a line, the report pointed to two things: the Talwars' innocence and someone else's involvement. It was the answer to the question that has dogged the Talwars for nearly a decade: 'If you didn't do it, who did?' Led by the late AGL Kaul, the case's investigating officer, the CBI then embarked upon what can only be termed as a criminal journey. In collusion with the CDFD, it invented a reason for the presence of Hemraj's blood on Krishna's pillow cover: it wasn't there in the first place, said the CBI. A typographical error led to the confusion. Thereafter, there was a flurry of activity. Kaul's team ripped open the CDFD seals, took out the exhibits, and photographed them, placing handwritten false exhibit numbers in the frame. Kaul then wrote a letter to the CDFD saying there "appeared to be a typographical error" in its report. He helpfully told them exactly where the error was. He also flew down to Hyderabad. The lab wrote back promptly: yes indeed, there was a typo, as Kaul had pointed out. The division bench of the Allahabad High court dissects and exposes this elaborate lie. Surgically. Relying on the CBI's own witnesses, CDFD scientist SPR Prasad and investigating officer AGL Kaul, the court says the following: *'We have very carefully scanned the evidence of SPR Prasad and AGL Kaul but there is nothing in their evidence which may show as to how the error had crept in, when and how the error took place.' *'Moreover the discovery of the alleged typographical error... by AGL Kaul more than three years after its submission and issuance of clarificatory letter of the CDFD Hyderabad, thereafter on 24.3.2011 promptly, pursuant to the letter dated 17.3.2011 given by the investigating agency to CDFD Hyderabad which in itself was clearly "suggestive" in nature as it was virtually suggested by the said letter of the Investigating Officer that there was a typographical error. [The letter] appears to be manipulated. It is very strange that although AGL Kaul has testified that when he took over the investigation of the case he had noticed that error in the most controversial exhibits...he took no steps or sought any rectification.' *'...experts sat down together and prepared the final report and as such there was no possibility of any error...having crept in.' 'The prosecution has further failed to come up with any explanation to prove that no tampering with the most material exhibits of the case had taken place.' It was not the burden of this court to tell us who killed Aarushi and Hemraj. But in exposing the CBI's lie it has pointed us to who it might have been. The three suspects who the agency didn't pursue after initial attempts are on the loose. Krishna's family is in Nepal, but he may well be employed in India. Rajkumar, last I found out, runs a beauty parlour in Kathmandu. Vijay Mandal's whereabouts are uncertain."
The entire commentary can be found at:
PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments. 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/c
