Jharkhand court denies bail to Nirupama Pathak’s mother

Koderma (Jharkhand)/ NEW DELHI - A local court in Jharkhand’s Koderma District has denied bail to Sudha Pathak, the mother of Delhi based journalist Nirupama Pathak, arrested on suspicion of killing her daughter.

Twenty-three-year-old Nirupama was found dead at her home in Koderma District in mysterious circumstances on April 29. Sudha was detained on May 3 for her suspected role in the death of her daughter.

“The bail has been rejected as this matter is very sensational. It’s a matter of Section 302, and the girl has been killed under a conspiracy. Accepting the prosecution’s plea and doctors have also said that it’s a murder case, said Rizwan, police counsel.

“On this basis taking a decision in favour of the prosecution the request for bail has been denied,” he added. Meanwhile, dozens held a silent march in New Delhi in memory of Nirupama Pathak.

“This march is just to show that a week before we had demanded that as the local police is hushing up the murder case of Nirupama Pathak, the case should be given to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), but no action has been taken yet,” said Pushpendra Kulshreshtha, General Secretary of Delhi Press Club.

“I want to announce that from today onwards members of various intellectual communities, writers, people from theatre, NGOs, they will be part of a signature campaign and this protest will not come to an end unless and until the murderers of Nirupama are caught,” he added.

The Jharkhand police have also filed a case of rape and abetment to suicide against Nirupama Pathak’s boyfriend Priyabhanshu Ranjan.

On May 9, Ranjan’s parents claimed to have mobile proof that could nail the complicity of Nirupama’s parents in what they say is murder.

In a startling claim, Ranjan’s father said he had Nirupama’s last SMS in which she said that she had been locked inside a bathroom and was not being allowed to go out.

He also said that a similar message had come from his son, who was in Delhi.

The revelation came after Koderma Police served notices to three doctors who had performed a post mortem on Nirupama.

The court directed the police to file a First Information Report (FIR) against Ranjan, following charges levelled by Nirupama’s arrested mother Sudha Pathak.

However, the post-mortem report revealed that Pathak died due to asphyxia as a result of smothering and that she was 10-12 weeks pregnant. (ANI)