Aarushi Talwar-Hemraj double murder: Court to decide on Rajesh Talwar, Nupur Talwar's conviction today
14-year-old Aarushi Talwar, daughter of a dentist couple, Rajesh and Nupur Talwar, was found dead with her throat slit at her home in Noida, near Delhi in 2008. The body of their domestic help Hemraj was found on the terrace of the Talwars' house two days later. Aarushi's parents have been today acquitted by Allahabad High Court where they had appealed against their conviction.
Here's the timeline of the Aasrushi Talwar murder case:
2008 - May 16: Aarushi Talwar found dead with her throat slit in a bedroom of her home in Jal Vayu Vihar Noida. Based on Aarushi's parents' complaint, missing domestic help Hemraj, a Nepali, suspected of murder.
- May 17: Suspect Hemraj's decomposed body found on the terrace of Talwars' home.
- May 18: Police said murders done with surgical precision; insider job suspected. Aarushi's postmortem report ruled out sexual assault.
- May 19: Talwars' former Nepalese domestic help Vishnu Sharma named as suspect.
- May 21: Delhi Police joined murder probe; police said murder committed by a "doctor or a butcher".
- May 22: Aarushi's parents - Rajesh Talwar and Nupur Talwar - come under suspicion; police began investigation in dishonour killing angle. They quizzed Aarushi's close friend, whom she spoke to 688 times in the 45 days preceding her murder.
- May 23: Aarushi's father Dr. Rajesh Talwar arrested for the two murders, Aarushi and domestic help Hemraj
- June 1: Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) took over the investigation in the case.
- June 13: The Nepalese compounder of Dr Rajesh Talwar, Krishna (alias Kishan) arrested by the CBI after his polygraph test and Narco Analysis test at Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL), Bangalore the day before. Based on his information, a lie detector test was also conducted on Vijay Mandal, the domestic help of the Talwars' neighbours Praful Durani and Anita Durani. Raj Kumar, the servant of a doctor friend of the Talwars, was also arrested in the case.
- June 19: Judicial custody of Dr. Rajesh Talwar extended up to July 2, 2008. An application was moved for a second lie detection test of Dr. Rajesh Talwar, as his first lie detection test was inconclusive.
- June 20: Second lie detection test conducted on Rajesh Talwar
- June 25: Second lie detection test conducted on Nupur Talwar. Her first lie detection test was found inconclusive.
- June 26: CBI declared the case to be a "blind case". Rajesh Talwar refused bail by the special magistrate in Ghaziabad.
- July 3: The Supreme Court rejected a plea which challenged the narco-analysis test on the accused.
- July 12: Ghaziabad court gives bail to Rajesh Talwar after the CBI fails to provide evidence.
2010- January 5: CBI moved court to conduct narco test on the Talwar couple.
- December 29: CBI submited closure report. Clean chit to servants but points fingers at parents. However, there was not enough evidence against him. However, there was not enough evidence against the parents
2011- January 25: Rajesh Talwar attacked in the Ghaziabad court premises.
- February 9: Court took cognisance of the CBI report, charged Aarushi's parents with murder and destruction of evidence. Bailable warrants issued against the couple
- February 21: Couple approached the Allahabad High Court for quashing trial court summons.
- March 18: High Court dismissed their plea to quash summons and orders initiation of proceedings against them.
- March 19: The couple approached the Supreme Court which stays the trial against them.
2012- January 6: Supreme Court dismissed Talwar's plea and allows the trial to proceed.
- June 11: Trial started before Special Judge S Lal.
- April 30: Wife of Rajesh Talwar, Nupur Talwar was arrested.
- May 25: Talwars were charged by Ghaziabad court with murder, conspiracy and destruction of evidence.
- September 25: Nupur Talwar released on bail on Supreme Court order
2013- April: The CBI told the court that Aarushi and Hemraj were murdered by Rajesh and Nupur Talwar. CBI also said that Aarushi and Hemraj were found in objectionable and compromising position.
- May 3: Defence counsel pleads before the court to summon 14 people, including former CBI joint director Arun Kumar as witness. CBI opposes the plea
- May 6: Trial court dismisses Talwar's petition for summoning 14 witnesses. It orders recording of statements of Rajesh and Nupur
- October 10: Final arguments began.
- October 18: In closing arguments, the CBI said that the couple "misled" investigators.
- November 25: Talwar couple convicted by a special CBI court, sent to Dasna jail, Ghaziabad.
- November 26: Quantum of punishment delivered and Talwars were sentenced to life in prison by CBI court.
2014- January 21: The Talwars move Allahabad High Court against the CBI court's life sentence
2016- September 5: Nupur Talwar was released on parole for three weeks as her ailing mother needed medical attention.
2017- January 11: Allahabad High Court reserves its judgment on an appeal filed by the Talwars, challenging their conviction
- October 12: Aarushi's parents acquitted by Allahabad High Court