New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Tuesday asked city police to respond to a plea of Vishal Yadav, one of the three convicts who is serving life imprisonment in the Nitish Katara murder case, seeking two weeks` interim bail to attend his younger brother`s engagement ceremony.
"Issue notice. The status report be filed. Put up for hearing on February 7," a bench of justices Gita Mittal and JR Midha said.
The bench also asked the counsel for Yadav to provide details, including the mobile number of the bride`s father, for enabling the police to verify the claim that the engagement or ring ceremony is taking place on February 9 here.
On being mentioned about the urgency of case, it said, "Why have you come so late? You have approached us on February 4."
Dyan Krishnan, appearing for Delhi Police, opposed the plea saying that there have been instances when the convict has misused the liberty of bail.
"We have no problem, if the appellant is granted custody parole," he said.
The high court, on April 16, last year, had reserved its verdict on appeals of the three convicts against a lower court judgement awarding rigorous life imprisonment to them for abducting and killing Katara in 2002.
Vikas, his cousin Vishal and Sukhdev Pehalwan are serving life term for abducting and killing Katara, a business executive and son of an IAS officer, on the intervening night of February 16-17, 2002.
The Yadavs allegedly killed the victim as they did not approve his alleged affair with their sister Bharti Yadav.
Vikas and Vishal were convicted by the trial court in 2008.
Their accomplice Pehlwan, who had absconded for some time but was arrested in 2005, was tried separately and sentenced to life term by the trial court.
