Tehelka - The People's Paper

What is it about us that lets murder go unpunished? Is it just a rotten system? Or are we also a sick, uncaring society? Vineet Khare reports on a verdict that has left most aghast

Shock Of Their Lives: Jessica’s sister Sabrina and her father at their home in Gurgaon after the acquittal of the charged
Photo Sharad Saxena

Grief hangs heavy in the Lall residence. The vacant, haunted-by-grief look on 77-year-old Ajit Kumar Lall’s face, his feeble footstep, his demeanour is difficult to bear. The relief, perhaps, lies in the fact that the father does not connect his daughter Jessica Lall’s face — staring out of a framed photo on the wall — with the murder that happened that night. That night, long ago, seven long years ago, on April 29, 1999, when Jessica slumped on the cold floor at Tamarind Court, a glitzy restaurant whose rooftop in Delhi afforded one of the most breathtaking views of the Qutub Minar.

The moonlit night and at least a hundred privileged party-goers had witnessed a murder most foul. The young Jessica, who had offered to play bargirl, had been shot only because she had refused to serve a drink. A hundred people at the very least had heard the gunshots pierce the night, some, if not most of them had most certainly seen the man who pulled the trigger. The facts are simple and stark — Jessica had been shot and killed and yet, seven years later, the only words that Additional Sessions Judge SL Bhayana read out on the case that had shocked the Capital were, “All the accused are acquitted.”

The judgement is more shocking than the crime. Justice denied because the police could not gather enough evidence to secure the conviction of those accused of her murder. If we set aside our cynicism and deadened reflexive responses for a moment, two facts, both obvious, still stand out: all the accused here belong to the upper crust, and so did many of those hundreds of eyewitnesses in front of whom Jessica was shot dead.

Of course this travesty of justice is a severe indictment of the dysfunctional criminal justice system. But how does it reflect on our glitterati, on us, on the hundred-plus who were witness to the crime.

In her quest for justice, Sabrina Lall confesses to paying witness Karan Rajput, who turned hostile. She says he extracted money from both the defence and the prosecution

Sabrina, Jessica’s sister, had lost hope long back. “I had been expecting it (ever) since Manu Sharma was granted bail. But despite the expected, I was saddened and depressed. I have lost faith in the judiciary and everyone,” she says sitting with her father in their Gurgaon residence.

It was not always like this. After all, many had seen prime accused Manu Sharma scurrying out of Qutub Colonnade. The murder had many eyewitnesses. The police had shown alacrity in apprehending Manu. And the Lalls had the media’s support and sympathy. There were contrary and glaring facts. Facts that the court could have questioned. Why for instance did the police or the prosecution not probe the fact that there were glaring inconsistencies between their claim that only one weapon was used and the forensic report which said two weapons had been used? What went wrong? “Money and power held sway, with the entire system succumbing to the powerplay of the rich,” says Sabrina. “Our system takes too long in dispensing justice. When the investigations began, we felt it was an open-and-shut case. But as the case progressed, we realised that getting justice won’t be all that easy. While we fought hard to seek justice, a battery of top defence counsels sniggered and gave dirty looks. But it was Shayan Munshi’s blatant lies in court, his theory regarding two killers that sealed the case. After religiously following the case for two years and eight months, I lost faith. Our quest for justice has failed.”

The reason why the case ended with no conviction is that classic of the Indian criminal justice system — the witnesses turned hostile. Sabrina’s anger is especially directed at Munshi, model, aspiring actor and one of the three key witnesses who later turned hostile. “I thought he was educated and came from a good background. I called him so many times before his appearance at the court, but he wouldn’t respond. He never bothered to return calls. I had then realised he would turn hostile. As expected, he shamelessly kept spitting lies before the judge. At that time, the fashion fraternity had risen in his support, but I just wanted him to speak the truth before the judge.”

Steadfast Witnesses: Bina and Malini Ramani

Adds Sabrina’s business partner and family friend, Nalini: “There was no question of him being threatened. He seems to have been paid to keep his mouth shut.” Munshi couldn’t be reached for comments.

Sabrina also accused Karan Rajput, another witness who turned hostile, of demanding money from her in return for deposing in her favour. “He extracted money from both the defence and prosecution. And we paid him (she refuses to disclose the amount). At least we wouldn’t regret we didn’t give it our best shot.”

The family is also disappointed with their lawyer SK Saxena. “He got disheartened when eyewitnesses began turning hostile. He told me, get me an eyewitness and I will get you conviction.”

What merits comparison is the fate of filmstar Salman Khan who was recently given a one-year jail term by a Rajasthan court for killing a blackbuck, an endangered animal. The members of the Bishnoi tribe which hold the blackbuck sacred — testified against him and, more pertinently, stuck to their testimonies. These witnesses did not turn ‘hostile’. Contrast them with Delhi’s swish set present at Bina Ramani’s hip restaurant. Not one witness to identify Jessica’s killer.

The gruesome murder has had devastating consequences for the entire Lall family. While her mother Kay passed away, the father suffers from amnesia after suffering two strokes. Now he remembers nothing.

A disillusioned Sabrina refuses to appeal and so far the State has not indicated that it will challenge the acquittal. Will justice elude Jessica because we are a sick society? Will it also elude her and other victims (see box) because of a system so rotten?