Court orders Guj Police to produce shooter in Asaram case witness murder

Muzaffarnagar: Taking strong objection to Gujarat Police's failure to produce Kartik Haldar, alleged henchman of Asaram, in connection with the Akhil Gupta murder case, a local court today directed it to do so on August 8.

Chief Judicial Magistrate Garima Choudhry issued the order on the request of local police that it is necessary to interrogate Haldar to proceed in the investigation in the murder of Gupta, a prime witness in a rape case against self-styled godman Asaram.

The court had earlier directed Gujarat Police to produce before it Haldar, who is lodged in Ahmedabad jail after his arrest from Raipur in Chhattisgarh in March.

35-year-old Akhil was shot at by unidentified persons on January 11 last year. Subsequently, he was rushed to a nearby hospital where doctors declared him brought dead. He was a cook and personal aide of Asaram, who has been in jail since August 2013, for allegedly sexually assaulting a 16-year-old schoolgirl.