Geetika case: Kanda gets 3 more days in police custody

Former Haryana minister Gopal Goyal Kanda, key accused in the Geetika Sharma suicide case, was on Saturday further remanded to three-day police custody by a Delhi court after investigators alleged "non-cooperation" and sought to quiz him to recover mobile phones and a missing hard disc.

Delhi police, which sought seven days custody of Kanda for recovering three mobile phones of MDLR employees that he was using, was allowed by Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate D K Jangala to interrogate him for three more days in its custody.

Public prosecutor Rajiv Mohan said that Kanda was evasive in his replies regarding these mobile phones and the calls made from them.

"He was giving evasive answers. We had asked him to give those three mobile phones, which he was using but his men are not cooperating with us to recover them. Mobile phones and hard disc aspect are very important for us," the prosecutor said.

"Through no other source we can recover the mobile phones and hard disc of Kanda's computer, a crucial evidence, so his seven-day custody is needed," he added.

The police also required Kanda's custody to recover Geetika's mobile phone, which she had surrendered after quitting the job in Kanda's company, he said.

Accusing Kanda of non-cooperation, the prosecutor said that Kanda was not providing them the complete booklet of his passport, needed to ascertain the allegation that he went all the way to Dubai to threaten the victim to leave her job with Emirates airlines in July 2010.

Senior advocate Ramesh Gupta, appearing for Kanda, opposed the plea for police custody saying they have not brought any new evidence to show that Kanda abetted Geetika's suicide.

"In police custody they are asking obnoxious questions from me. I have been grilled by DCP, ACP, SHO and other officials but nobody except the IO can question me," Gupta said.

On August 18, the former Haryana minister had been sent to seven-day police remand by the court, which said his custodial interrogation is necessary for recovery of various materials related to the case.

Seeking Kanda's custody, prosecutor Rajiv Mohan had said that all the circumstances leading to the suicide of Geetika can be unearthed only by sustained custodial interrogation of the accused.

Kanda, was arrested in the wee hours of the morning of August 18 after being on the run for 10 days.
On August 16, a magisterial court had issued a non-bailable warrant against the former Haryana minister. The court had asked the police to execute the arrest warrant by August 24.

Earlier, Kanda's anticipatory bail plea was rejected by a sessions court and the Delhi high court.

Kanda's employee, Aruna Chaddha, a senior functionary with now defunct MDLR airlines, arrested on August 8 is in judicial custody in connection with the suicide of 23-year-old air hostess Geetika Sharma, who allegedly took her life on August 5 at her Ashok Vihar residence.

In her suicide note, Geetika had alleged that Kanda and Chaddha were harassing her to rejoin the former minister's firm after she left the job.

Both Kanda and Chaddha have denied the allegations.