'Talwars' indifference was shocking on fateful day'

An erstwhile Noida administration officer on  Wednesday told a court here that he was 'shocked' to see the "indifferent attitude" of dentist couple Nupur and Rajesh Talwar on the fateful day when the body of their teenaged daughter Aarushi was recovered from their flat.

Deposing as a prosecution witness, Sanjay Chauhan, who was posted as an additional magistrate in Noida in 2008, told a special Central Bureau of Investigation court that around the time Aarushi's body was recovered in her flat, he was passing by the area after an early morning walk.

He added that finding a crowd outside the Talwars' house, he ventured to enquire as to what has happened and entered the house to assess the situation after coming to know that a girl was murdered in the house.

Chauhan, who is now posted as Meerut sub-divisional magistrate, told the court that he went to the crime spot to assess the situation and was shocked to see that Aarushi's

parents were totally indifferent to the murder of their own daughter.

"I was shocked to see there was no trace of sorrow on the Talwars," he told the court, while identifying them as Aarushi's parents.

He said said that he waited for about an hour there for the 'panchnama' of the body, but when it was not done he returned to his house. He added that he had heard Rajesh telling the police to search for Hemraj instead of wasting time questioning him.

He said his statement was recorded by the CBI on November 12, 2008.

When defence counsel Manoj Shishodia questioned him as to why did he go to the crime spot without any official order, Chauhan said he was additional working magistrate in the office of Noida district's magistrate and was 'well within my power and jurisdiction to enquire into an incident, if I come across one'.