Delhi court acquits ex-Haryana minister Gopal Kanda in air hostess suicide case

Geetika (23), a former air hostess with Kanda’s MLDR Airlines, died by suicide at her Delhi home on August 5, 2012. In a suicide note, she said she was taking the step due to “harassment” by Kanda and Chadha.

In the 189-page judgment, Special Judge Vikas Dhull said: “The mere naming of accused in suicide note is not enough unless specific acts or instigation on the part of the accused is clearly spelt out.”

The court said it could be inferred that Kanda was attracted to Geetika, and that could have been the reason for the two accused to travel to Dubai to ask her to rejoin his airline. It also pointed to “other benefits” he gave Geetika – a BMW car, sponsoring her MBA course fee, and taking her to Singapore – and said they were “due to his liking or attraction” towards her.

#WATCH | After Delhi’s Rouse Avenue Court acquitted former Haryana Minister Gopal Goyal Kanda in air hostess Geetika Sharma suicide case, he says, “There was no evidence against me, this case was made against me and today the court has given its verdict.” pic.twitter.com/rG9gE6EZ86

— ANI (@ANI) July 25, 2023

The prosecution alleged that Chadha had levelled allegations “against the character of the deceased” and also asked Geetika’s mother to send her to the MDLR office to sign some documents, failing which an FIR would be lodged against her in Haryana.

Geetika’s mother, Anuradha Sharma, died by suicide six months later. She left behind a note saying she was depressed after Geetika’s death and held Kanda and Chaddha responsible for it.

The court said the prosecution failed to prove the allegation that Geetika killed herself due to calls made by Kanda and Chadha to her mother on August 3-4, 2012.

Geetika Sharma. (Express archives)

“The best evidence… (which) could have proved the contents of the call allegedly made by accused… on August 3-4 was the mother of deceased Geetika Sharma, but unfortunately she expired before her deposition in this case and, therefore, there is no evidence on record to establish the contents of the call made,” the court said.

The court also said that Geetika’s brother did not depose that she was “tensed and depressed” because of the conversation between the accused and her mother. “If deceased Geetika Sharma was indeed stressed and depressed after hearing the imputation against her character made by accused persons to her mother, then she would have apprised the same to her brother prior to her death,” the court said.

It said the phone calls can by “no stretch of imagination be construed as an act by which the accused persons intended that the deceased would commit suicide”, and there was no telephone conversation between Geetika and Kanda for seven-eight months, and between Geetika and Chadha for one month prior to her suicide.

“This fact also establishes on record that accused persons had no opportunity to directly instigate deceased Geetika Sharma to commit suicide,” the court said.

Pointing out deficiencies in the investigation, the court said that as per Geetika’s call detail records, about six calls were made to her on August 4, 2012, of which three were from her brother and the remaining were not investigated.

The court said the possibility of Geetika staying with some other person in Mumbai on the night of August 3 and “having physical relations with that person” could not be ruled out, adding that the person could have called her on the night of August 4 and said something which “eventually led her to commit suicide”.

“It was imperative for the IO to have investigated those three calls, out of which two calls were from the same mobile number… of duration of 192 and 155 seconds respectively… as they were made prior to her death and could have thrown some light… The possibility of some person known to deceased… calling (her)… and instigating her, due to which she committed suicide, also cannot be ruled out,” it said.

Expressing shock over the acquittal, Geetika’s brother, Ankit, said: “The moment the court acquitted Kanda, it seemed like the ground beneath my feet was shaking… no one ever treated him like an accused… at every hearing, he was treated by everyone as a well-wisher. We are not financially capable of appealing in the High Court. The State should file an appeal against this order.”

“There was no evidence against me. The allegations were false and the court has given its verdict today,” said Kanda.

Hours after the court’s order, the BJP said Kanda, who is the Haryana Lokhit Party MLA from Sirsa, was welcome to join the party.

“Gopal Kanda is already a part of the BJP-led NDA government in Haryana… I believe an Independent MLA can’t join any other political party as it may invite his disqualification. But despite that, if he wants to join us, then he is welcome to do so,” said Haryana BJP spokesperson Sanjay Sharma.

“He was invited to the recent NDA meeting too and had sent his brother Govind Kanda,” he said.

Kanda has been supporting the BJP-led government in Haryana since the 2019 Assembly polls. The BJP had turned to his Haryana Lokhit Party to cobble a majority to stay in power, but later backed off, following the backlash over the suicide case against him.

Kanda, however, continued to proclaim support for the BJP. His brother, Govind, was among the key organisers of Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s rally in Sirsa last month. Ahead of the 2021 Ellenabad bypoll in Haryana, Govind had joined the BJP and was fielded against INLD’s Abhay Chautala who won the election.

On Tuesday, the Opposition parties in Haryana remained silent on Kanda’s acquittal, saying they didn’t want to comment on a court order.