Four days after Allahabad High Court acquitted Rajesh and Nupur Talwar in the double murder case of their teenage daughter Aarushi and domestic help Hemraj, the Talwars are likely to walk out of the Dasna Jail today.
"Court has opened after a two-day holiday, there is a strong possibility that the Talwars will be released today," said D Maurya, jailor of Dasna Jail. He said Talwars would continue to visit Dasna Jail periodically to "provide medical assistance to jail inmates".
Nupur and Rajesh Talwar, both dentists, have revived the near-defunct dental department at the prison hospital. Besides prisoners, Talwars have also been treating jail officials and their children. "Talwars gave medical service for free. Had they taken remuneration, it would have cost nearly Rs 49,500," said jailor of Dasna Jail in Ghaziabad.
Talwars' lawyer Tanveer Ahmed Mir said the couple could walk out of the jail anytime after 3 pm today.
HERE IS ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW THE AARUSHI-HEMRAJ CASE AND TALWARS' ACQUITTAL:
Rajesh and Nupur Talwar's daughter Aarushi Talwar was found dead inside her room with her throat slit at Noida's Jalvayu Vihar in May 2008. The needle of suspicion had initially moved towards 45-year-old domestic help Hemraj, who had gone missing but his body was recovered from the terrace of the house two days later.
In November 2013, a special CBI court of Ghaziabad convicted Rajesh and Nupur Talwar for the murder of their daughter Aarushi and domestic help Hemraj and sentenced them to life imprisonment. On Thursday, a division bench of Allahabad High Court, comprising Justices B K Narayana and A K Mishra, upheld the appeals by Talwars against the Ghaziabad CBI court order, and acquitted them.
Pronouncing the verdict in a packed court room, the bench held that as per the circumstances and the evidence on record Rajesh and Nupur Talwar cannot not be held guilty.
Stating that the basic legal tenet was that an accused is innocent until proven guilty, the judges said, "The CBI has not provided the court with evidences that prove beyond doubt that they were guilty. In such cases, even the Supreme Court, in the absence of proper facts and proof, doesn't give such harsh punishments... The parents cannot be held guilty just because they were present in the house when the murder took place. They should get the benefit of doubt. They are being set free in this case."
Talwars, who were following the court's judgment on television in their prison barracks, got emotional after hearing the verdict. The couple, who had skipped breakfast, were praying since morning. "Nupur had tears in her eyes," a Dasna Jail official told India Today after the Allahabad High Court's order.
Senior lawyer Rebecca John, who was part of the legal team that argued for the Talwar couple, hailed the Allahabad High Court judgment, saying the case against them was based on "innuendos" and "assumptions".
Following their release from the jail, Rajesh and Nupur Talwar would visit the Dasna jail once in every 15 days to attend to patients. "We were concerned about the fate of our dental department after their release. They have assured us that they would visit the jail to attend to inmates every 15 days even after their release," jail doctor Sunil Tyagi told PTI.
(With inputs from PTI)
Rajesh and Nupur Talwar were acquitted in the Aarushi-Hemraj murder case by Allahabad High Court. Photo: PTI.