The Delhi Police yesterday failed to get custody of Aruna Chaddha, an aide of former Haryana Minister Gopal Kanda - both of whom were named in the suicide note of former air hostess Geetika Sharma. Ms Sharma hanged herself on August 5.
Here are 10 developments in the case:
Geetika in her suicide note blamed Mr Kanda and Ms Chaddha for harassment. Ms Chaddha has been arrested. During the hearing in court on Monday, the police told the court that Ms Chaddha's original statement is different from that of Mr Kanda and that both need to be confronted with each other. In court, Ms Chaddha broke down today. Her lawyers said she should be granted bail soon because she is a single mother. Her eight-year-old daughter, they said, is traumatised by her mother's absence. Ms Chaddha is in judicial custody till today; the police are likely to file a fresh application for her custody.
The police says former Haryana minister Gopal Kanda may have to take a brain-mapping test. This will help the Delhi Police in proving its case against Mr Kanda, who has been charged with abetment to suicide, criminal intimidation, criminal conspiracy and destruction of evidence.
Searches at his office in Gurgaon have helped the police locate hard drives that allegedly have copies of emails between Mr Kanda and Geetika. A forged letter has also been found, though the police refused to share more details about its contents or signatory.
Mr Kanda was arrested early on Saturday morning but only after he came to surrender at a police station in the capital.
Despite check posts set up across the city that night, Mr Kanda drove undetected through at least four police barriers. He was seated in a TV news channel's van with a "Press" sticker on its windshield, which is reportedly why the police did not search the vehicle.
Mr Kanda has been refused anticipatory bail. The police says that evidence crucial to the case - like computers which had emails exchanged between Geetika and the politician, have gone missing.
Mr Kanda went underground for 11 days after the police said it wanted to interrogate him. A non-bailable warrant was issued against him last week.
Geetika's family alleges that the former minister threatened and blackmailed her because he was unhappy that she quit working for him.
In August 2010, when she moved to the UAE to work for Emirates Airways, he visited Geetika with Ms Chaddha and allegedly pressured her to return to Delhi. She began working for a company owned by him just two months later.
Mr Kanda has said he was fond of Geetika but did not trouble her. His lawyers have described her as a "hypersensitive girl" with "mixed emotions of hatred and love" for him.
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