Case in court,Talwars on Facebook,Twitter to seek ‘justice for Aarushi’

The home page of the website,www.justiceforaarushitalwar.com,states: “Aarushi Talwar,a yet-to-be 14 year old whose birthday plans,and many of her life’s wishes went down the drain on the night of 15th May,2008. A week before that night she wrote to her mom on Mother’s Day ‘I promise I will be famous one day and will make you proud’. Our little angel became world famous,as she became the victim of a gruesome murder. The case has now become so complicated,thanks to the goof-up of the investigating agencies,the endless media trials and speculations and insistence of the various organizations involved to make the parents scapegoats despite having evidence to the contrary!”

It goes on to list what the family sees as loopholes in the CBI case. The site has separate sections “about the parents” and “about Aarushi” which detail the “loving” relationship that members of family shared between them. There is also a media section which highlights articles written in support of the Talwars.

The Facebook page ‘Aarushi Talwar: Quest for Justice’ also has a similar theme. Photographs of Aarushi abound,with constant updates on the case in court. There is a post ‘Wishful Interpretation of CBI’ which concerns the testimony of Dr Sunil Dohre who conducted the postmortem on Aarushi:

CBI: Can the cut in the neck of Aarushi be made with a surgical scalpel?

Dohare: Yes it is possible.

CBI: Can the injury on the forehead of Aarushi be caused by a golf club?

Dohare: It is possible that the injury could have been caused by a golf club.

CBI: Can it be by something other than a scalpel or golf club?

Dohare: Yes it can.

Conclusive Evidence of CBI: The cut in the neck was made with a scalpel and injury on the forehead was caused by a golf club!

0+0+0 = 3???”

Lawyers who deal with such criminal cases on regular basis say that the campaign is “definitely questionable”.

Aman Lekhi,Supreme Court lawyer and senior advocate,said: “The idea that such a campaign is run with details of the case being put out with a one-sided opinion can influence the case. Even if proceedings of the court might not be affected,witnesses produced in future could be. A case for contempt can be made out. In a scenario such as this,the freedom of speech has to be tempered with other mitigating factors. If the parties involved in the campaign are to be restrained,ideally the state which is prosecuting it should take up the matter in court.”

Asked about the campaign,Dr Dinesh Talwar,brother of Rajesh and a regular visitor at the Ghaziabad court,said the sites were run by “friends and family”. He said the purpose was to correct public perception.

To a query whether this amounted to interference with court proceedings,Dinesh Talwar said,“Since the last four years,newspapers and television have been giving out whatever the CBI tells them,whether right or wrong. A lot of people realise the injustice and are expressing themselves through these sites.”

On the Facebook page,relatives of the Talwar family engage visitors. Vandana Talwar,Arushi’s aunt who is an anaesthesiologist,wrote: “Hi Friends,I will be on twitter on 20th August from 5 pm to 7 pm to share my thoughts and to know your’s too regarding the “Flip Flops of The CBI” on Aarushi Murder Case. Please join me at @Justice4Aarushi@twitter.com.”

Those who sign up on the site as well as the Facebook page have been sent mails from the email ID aarushitalwar2008@gmail.com,which similarly point out flaws in the CBI case.

The last line on the home page of the website justiceforaarushitalwar.com reminds all visitors: “As all doors seem to be closing,there is a feeling of sheer helplessness. Let us hope that God will have mercy one day! Remember,this could happen to any Indian,to you,to me or to anybody!”