New Delhi । Dentist couple Rajesh and Nupur Talwar were charged with murder of their teenaged daughter Aarushi and their domestic help, Hemraj, by a local court which said trial in the four-year-old case will commence on 4th June. 

Additional District Judge S Lal on Friday also slapped another charge of misleading the investigation against Rajesh who had filed an FIR with Noida police alleging that Hemraj had killed his daughter in their Jalvayu Vihar residence on the intervening night of May 15-16, 2008. The body of Hemraj was found on the terrace of their home on 17th May.

Talwars’ lawyers on Friday moved an application seeking certified copy of the court order and at least 15 days time for commencement of trial so that they can prepare their case.

The court, however, granted only nine days and fixed 4th June as the date of starting the trial.

Manoj Sisodia, representing Talwars, told reporters that once they get a certified copy of the order, they may appeal against the charges framed by the court in the higher court. Rajesh and Nupur came to the court in the morning but waited till afternoon for the framing of charges.

Post-lunch when the court reconvened, the couple was asked to stand in the accused box and sign the charge sheet presented to them by the court officials.

“According to the procedure, the judge asked them whether their plead guilty or not to which both Rajesh and Nupur Talwar said that they would face the trial,” Sisodia said.

Once the trial starts, CBI’s lawyers would start examination of evidence to corroborate allegations levelled against the Talwar couple.

The agency has presented a list of 141 evidences which includes some key witnesses like Talwars’ erstwhile maid Bharti who was among the first to see the body of Aarushi among others.

After the CBI completes its examination, defence would start the cross examination process.

In his order, the judge had held there is enough prima- facie evidence to start trial against accused Rajesh and Nupur under charges of Section 302 read with Section 34 (murder with common intention) of Indian Penal Code and Section 201 read with Section 34 (destruction of evidence with common intention) of the IPC.

The judge mentioned prosecution’s argument that there was enough circumstantial evidence to suggest that Rajesh and Nupur should be charged for murder and destruction of evidence with common intention and Rajesh for additional charges of misleading the investigation.

He cited defence arguments which said the case was based merely on circumstantial evidence and all vital links of the chain of evidence do not connect completly.

In its order, the court also mentioned CBI’s claims that the wounds on the neck of Hemraj and Aarushi were caused by surgical equipment which could have been a work of trained professionals like Rajesh and Nupur.

The defence had rejected the theory saying these wounds could have been caused by a sharp weapon like ‘Khukri’ which was common among Nepali citizens.

Nupur is in judicial custody since 30th April while father Rajesh is on bail.

Chennai । A batting masterclass from M Vijay and a catalogue of errors from Delhi Daredevils ensured that a well-supported Chennai Super Kings set up an intriguing final against Kolkata Knight Riders. 

The Daredevils made a series of odd choices, and each one backfired spectacularly in a qualifier game that was dominated by the Super Kings to the extent that the eventual margin of victory was an emphatic 86 runs.

From the word go, Vijay timed the ball sweetly, picking off the quick bowlers at will through off side and on. The manner in which he took deliveries from outside the off stump and whipped them through the on side showed how well he was seeing the ball. 

The spinners were treated with utmost contempt, and even the fact that Mike Hussey struggled for fluency did little to slow down the Super Kings. 

When Hussey, whose 20 did not even come at a run-a-ball, was replaced by Suresh Raina, the pace picked up. As Raina brought brute force to the proceedings, Vijay provided constant reminders of his undeniable talent. Varun Aaron was brutally dispatched, Virender Sehwag’s solitary over cost 21 and IPL debutant Sunny Gupta could not be bowled for a fourth over after his first three cost 47.

As Vijay became the only Indian to score two hundreds in the IPL, cameos from Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Dwayne Bravo ensured that the Super Kings ended on a massive 222 for 5. Vijay, who was visibly tiring towards the end of his 58-ball 113, walked off to a rousing ovation, and the game was as good as in the bag.

When Sehwag won the toss and chose to field, you had to wonder if this was the wisest thing to do in a crunch game. After all, the pressure of the scoreboard would only add to the difficulty of batting second in case the pitch slowed down significantly.

When Sehwag revealed that Delhi were without Morne Morkel, their standout bowler, and Irfan Pathan, who did not recover from a split webbing in his right hand, the decision to field made sense, to a point. 

While there was some suggestion that Morkel was under the weather, Mahela Jayawardene, who was mic-ed up, explained that the think tank were forced to leave Morkel out as they needed an allrounder to replace Pathan. 

While Andre Russell is a player of immense promise, the decision to leave Morkel out was always going to be fraught with danger. Add to this the fact that Delhi decided to hand Gupta, the offspinner who plays for Tamil Nadu in the Ranji trophy, his first IPL cap, and the extent of confusion within the Dehi ranks became obvious.

But the problems did not end merely with selection. In pursuit of 223, the Daredevils chose to open with David Warner and Mahela Jayawardene, dropping Sehwag down to No. 3. When Warner drilled one to mid-off to be well caught by the man of the moment, Vijay, and Sehwag launched into an ambitious pull to a ball well outside the off stump to be caught in the deep, the chase was dead in the water. 

Jayawardene kept hopes alive with a well-paced 55, but with no company of note, the Daredevils slumped to 136 all out. The Super Kings were into their fourth IPL final, and all of a sudden, the possibility of defending their title seemed anything but remote.