Youths in court after New Delhi officer killed in gang-rape protest

Relatives of Indian policeman Subhash Tomar grieve as his body is brought for cremation in New Delhi, India, Tuesday, Dec. 25, 2012. Tomar who was injured in Sunday’s clashes with people protesting against the brutal gang-rape of a woman on a moving bus died in hospital Tuesday. (AP Photo/ Mustafa Quraishi)

Delhi Police Wednesday failed to provide evidence in court against the eight youth arrested for attempt to murder constable Subhash Chand Tomar.

Police failed to prove their claims in a district court that the eight youth were involved in the incident due to lack of any CCTV footage or eyewitness in favour of their allegations.

Delhi Police Commissioner Neeraj Kumar said that eight people were arrested from the spot where the constable fell near India Gate in central Delhi.

The accused, who got bail after their arrest Dec 23, claim they were picked up by police from different places in the capital.

Amit Joshi, his brother Kailash Joshi, Nafees Ahmed, Shankar, Aam Admi Party activist Chaman Kumar, Shantanu, Nand Kumar and Abhishekh live in different areas in Delhi.

At the time of the incident, only Nafees was near India Gate where Tomar was found unconscious.

Amit and Kailash Joshi Wednesday moved an application in court to preserve CCTV footage of a Delhi Metro train Dec 23 because at the time of the incident, they were in the train.

“The Joshis boarded a metro at Rithala Metro station around 4.15 p.m. Dec 23 and disembarked around 5.15 p.m. at Rajiv Chowk metro station. They bought a mobile phone in Connaught Place, whose bill they have submitted in court. They were arrested at Rajiv Chowk,” said Avinash Nandan Sharma, an advocate of the eight accused.

Sharma said that only Nafees and Chaman had accepted in court that they were present at the protest.

“Nafees told IANS that he was picked up by police around 12.30 p.m., three hours before the constable was injured. Chaman said he was not present at India gate when the incident happened,” Sharma told IANS.

Yogendra and Pauline, who tried to help the fallen constable, said the constable had no visible injuries and that he fell while chasing crowd at a road leading to India Gate Dec 23 evening.

This contradicts the police’s version, which claims the constable was attacked by protesters, which led to his death Tuesday morning.

Dr. T.S. Sidhu, medical superintendent at Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital where Tomar was taken, said: “Subhash Chand Tomar was brought here in a state of total collapse. Our doctors revived him and as he was not stable, we shifted him to the Intensive Care Unit. He was on ventilator.”

The doctor said there were no “major external injury marks except for some cuts and bruises” on Tomar.

The constable had received injuries Dec 23 after a protest against the gang-rape of a 23-year-old girl in a moving bus in south Delhi on December 16 got violent here in the city near India Gate.

Tomar was cremated Tuesday afternoon with state honours.

Tags: Crime, gang rape, India, New Delhi, Subhash Chand Tomar