Obsessed, wanted Geetika to live with me, only me: Gopal Goyal Kanda to police

Former Haryana minister and MDLR chief Gopal Goyal Kanda, facing charges of abetting the suicide of former airhostess Geetika Sharma, has told police he used his "position, wealth, force and other resources" to "tempt and intimidate" Geetika because he did not want to let her out of his sight. He has described his feelings for her as one of "obsession and possessiveness".

"I wanted her to live with me, only me, as my own," Kanda is quoted as having told police. His "confession" has been submitted in court by police with the noting that he "refused to sign" the statement.

Kanda recalls spotting Geetika during the MDLR Airlines cabin crew interviews. "On seeing Geetika Sharma, I told my board members that this girl is smart and beautiful, so give her the job. Geetika was not yet 18. I said train her for six months and by then she will be 18. She was later handed a trainee cabin crew appointment letter... I liked Geetika a lot, so I quickly appointed her a senior cabin crew member in August 2008."

In 2009, when MDLR Airlines stopped operations, Kanda made her group coordinator, MDLR group of companies, with its office in Gurgaon. Her appointment, the statement quotes him as saying, required her to report to him every evening. "Geetika would give me a daily report every evening. Our daily meetings brought us together and I got attracted to Geetika. After the airline shut down, whenever Geetika spoke about leaving the company, I raised her salary and offered a promotion to keep her in my office," he told police.

"In 2010, Geetika quit but her papers were still with the company. She asked me several times for her papers but I did not want her to leave. I directed my company not to return her papers and not to give her an NOC (no-objection certificate) because I did not want her to go away. I wanted her to return to me for a job.

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