Ryan murder case: Student accused of killing Pradyuman Thakur remanded to three-day CBI custody

Gurugram: A 16-year-old student of Ryan International School in Gurugram, who is a prime accused in the sensational murder of Class 2 student Pradyuman Thakur, was on Wednesday remanded to a three-day CBI custody.

The order was passed by the Juvenile Justice Court in Gurugram.

''We demand strict punishment for him, he should be tried as an adult and hanged,'' Sushil Tekriwal, lawyer of Pradyuman Thakur's family had argued before the court. 

The Class XI student - a juvenile - was arrested by the CBI in connection with the case. According to the central investigating agency, the accused allegedly murdered Pradyuman Thakur since he wanted his exams and a scheduled meeting between teachers and parents delayed.

The CBI, which had pressed for a six-day custody of the accused, had ruled out the sexual assault angle in the case.

Based on its investigation, the CBI had said stated that the 16-year-old student used a knife as the murder weapon and later flushed it in the washroom. 

Addressing a press briefing, CBI spokesperson Abhishek Dayal said, ''The Class 11 student was detained on Tuesday night after inspection of the crime spot, scrutiny of CCTV footage, call records, statements, and questioning of several people revealed that he had carried a knife inside the school campus on the day of the crime and used it to kill his junior schoolmate.''

"The weapon used in the commission of the crime is a knife which was recovered initially by police in Gurugram (Haryana). It is now with us," Dayal said.

He said the detained student was weak in studies and "wanted to have the examination and parent-teacher meeting postponed". Pradhuman, 7, was his random target.

The parents of the detained student were kept informed throughout the investigation, said the spokesperson for the Central Bureau of Investigation.

The CBI took over the case on September 22 from Haryana Police, nearly two weeks after the Class 2 boy was found with his throat slit in a school bathroom.

The Haryana Police had earlier claimed that Pradhuman was killed by school bus conductor Ashok Kumar inside the toilet as the boy resisted a bid to sodomise him. While Ashok Kumar was arrested, Pradhuman's parents and two other staffers have claimed that he was being made a scapegoat.

However, the CBI has now given a clean chit to the bus conductor.

Zee Media quoted sources as saying that the senior student had a history of bad behaviour and was seen with a knife inside school campus on the day of the murder. 

The accused is also suspected of having watched a pornographic clip in the morning, and on seeing Pradhuman Thakur in the school bathroom, he might have tried to sexually assault him when he entered it, minutes after he was dropped by his father. However, the CBI has ruled out the sexual assault angle in the case.

The arrested student had reportedly told two classmates not to worry about upcoming exams as he'll do something to 'handle' it. 

Meanwhile, the father of the accused said that his son was being framed in the case.

"They (CBI) arrested my son last night. My son has not committed the crime. He informed gardener and teachers," said the father of the arrested student, further alleging that the CBI tried to force them to sign the confession documents.

"There was no spot of blood on my child's clothes. He was giving the exam," said the father. 

The 16-year-old was reportedly the first person to inform about Pradyuman's body in the bathroom.

Reacting to the developments, Pradyuman's uncle told Zee Media that "The truth must prevail."