Kothai rape-murder case: CBI arrests former Shimla SP DW Negi

Police had said the 16-year-old girl was offered a lift in a vehicle by the accused on July 4 when she was returning home from school in Kotkhai town. On the way, they raped and murdered her in a nearby forest.

SHIMLA: In the latest development in the Kothai gangrape-cum-murder case, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Thursday arrested DW Negi, former Superintendent of Police of Shimla.

Negi is the ninth police personnel to be arrested in the case.

Negi was produced before the special CBI court which sent him to agency's remand till November 20.

Following public pressure, the Himachal Pradesh government had earlier transferred Negi to state Vigilance and anti-corruption Bureau.

Notably, the top cop is an accused for the custodial death of one of the accused in the sensational gang rape and murder of a schoolgirl in Shimla district in July.

The central probe agency had in August arrested eight Himachal Pradesh Police officials, including Inspector General ZH Zaidi, in connection with the custodial death of Singh, a 29-year-old labourer from Nepal.

The Himachal Pradesh High Court in July handed over the investigation into the Kotkhai gang-rape and murder case and also the custodial death of one of the accused to the CBI.

Police had said the 16-year-old girl was offered a lift in a vehicle by the accused on July 4 when she was returning home from school in Kotkhai town, some 56 from the state capital.

On the way, they raped and murdered her in a nearby forest. Her naked body with injury marks was found two days later.

The arrested persons are prime accused Rajinder Singh, who offered her the lift, Ashish Chauhan, Subhash Bisht, Deepak Kumar, Suraj Singh and Lokjan. They believed to be drunk at the time of the crime.

However, a new twist in the case came after Rajinder Singh allegedly murdered fellow accused Suraj Singh in the police lock-up in Kotkhai on July 19.

Following the gang-rape of the girl, people had taken to streets and there were allegations about attempts to shelter some influential persons involved in the heinous crime and that the six accused held in the case were not the main accused.

On court orders, the CBI constituted a Special Investigation Team headed by a Superintendent of Police after registering a case under charges of murder and rape of the Indian Penal Code, apart from sections of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

The CBI also registered a separate FIR to probe the circumstances that led to the death of Suraj Singh.