Bail plea of BSP MP arrested in dowry death case rejected

Ghaziabad: A court here on Tuesday rejected the bail plea of BSP MP Narendra Kashyap who was arrested on charges of dowry death last month after his daughter-in-law was found dead.

Additional District Judge (I) Santosh Kumar Pandey rejected the bail request of the Rajya Sabha member, arrested on April 7, a day after his daughter-in-law Himanshi who was found dead with gunshot injuries. His wife and son were also arrested, while three other accused are absconding. 

Appearing for the prosecution, senior lawyers R.S. Massey Verma and Hariom Kashyap pleaded for rejecting the bail application. 

Verma argued the requisite conditions - dowry demand, cruelty and unnatural death of the bride within seven years of the marriage - for application of the Indian Penal Code's section 304b dealing with dowry deaths are met in this case. He noted Himanshi died of ante-mortem gunshot injuries so her death was unnatural, the death was within seven years of the wedding (solemnised in 2013) and cruelty was reported in the post-mortem report. 

Since the investigation is under progress, Kashyap, being an influential person, may tamper with the evidence, he added. 

Hariom Kashyap, who was also Himanshi's uncle, said some important points are being ignored by the investigation, such as that the gunshot injury was at a point which normally cannot be a suicide, while the post-mortem reports of various injuries on the face and hands prove cruelty.

Regarding the defence claim that no dowry demand was made since the MP possesses six vehicles, the prosecution countered that this does not rule out covetousness and there are cases where people were found guilty despite their affluence. 

The prosecution lawyer also contended that the crime scene was cleaned, evidence was tampered with, the pistol removed, and police not informed, bedroom curtains and all this circumstantial evidence proves the guilt of MP and his family.

Earlier defence counsel Sudhir Tyagi, while requesting the court to grant the bail to the MP, submitted that no demand for dowry was made from his side as he already possesses six vehicles, and after the incident, he had rushed Himanshi to the city's top hospital which also informed police.

He claimed no signs of cruelty were discerned on the body while blackening around the eyes are inevitable after a gunshot to the head, so in absence for requisite conditions, the MP deserved bail to collect evidence to prove his innocence as he could not do this from behind bars.

After hearing arguments from both sides, the judge rejected the bail plea. 

Kashyap and his wife Devendri Devi tried to dodge arrest by getting themselves admitted in the ICU after complaining of chest pain. But police arrested them from the ICU itself after discussing their condition, while their son was from their residence.