Thaindian News

Ghaziabad, Aug 16 (IANS) A forensic expert, who told a special court here that sexual assault of teen Aarushi could not be established on the basis of samples provided by the CBI, would be cross examined Aug 21, a defence lawyer said Thursday.

Prosecution witness B.K. Mahapatra, a scientist from the Central Forensic Science Laboratory, earlier told Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Special Judge S. Lal that he conducted tests on 27 articles submitted by the probe agency.

He said sexual assault could not be established on the basis of the vaginal swab of Aarushi sent for test.

Defence lawyer Manoj Sisodia said the court fixed Aug 21 for Mahapatra’s cross-examination.

Sisodia, meanwhile, filed a fresh application for recording on priority the statements of 13 witnesses whose names were mentioned by the CBI in the Supreme Court during Nupur Talwar’s bail plea hearing Monday.

Sisodia said they pleaded for recording the witnesses’ statements as the CBI claimed that there was apprehension of their getting influenced if Nupur Talwar, Aarushi’s mother and accused, was granted bail.

Nupur Talwar was taken into custody April 30. She challenged in the apex court the May 31 Allahabad High Court order rejecting her plea for bail. She is lodged in Dasna jail in Ghaziabad. He husband and co-accused Rajesh Talwar is out on bail.

Aarushi, 14, was found murdered at her parents’ Noida residence May 16, 2008. The body of her domestic help Hemraj was found the next day on the terrace of the house.