In a significant verdict, a special CBI court in Lucknow has handed down a life sentence to an IIT alumnus for the murder of Mumbai-based fashion designer Adesh Bajpai back in 2008.
The investigation conducted by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) revealed that Bajpai had traveled to Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh on August 10, 2008, to meet his friend Rahul Verma, who was subsequently identified as the prime suspect in the case.
Bajpai had journeyed from Mumbai to Lucknow on August 4 and then proceeded to Kanpur on August 10, where he was last seen before being reported missing.
According to a statement by the CBI spokesperson on Wednesday, “The deceased Adesh Bajpai and the accused Rahul Verma were associated within a social circle. Adesh Bajpai accompanied accused Rahul Verma on the night of August 10, 2008, from Moolganj Chauraha, Kanpur.”
The investigation by the CBI encompassed two key aspects: one involving the discovery of human remains inside a gunny bag within the premises of IIT-Kanpur, prompted by a report from a security guard, and the other pertaining to a missing person report filed by Bajpai’s father.
Various forensic examinations were conducted, including a skull superimposition test by the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) in Chandigarh, mitochondrial DNA analysis of bones recovered from IIT-Kanpur premises by the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology in Hyderabad, and a forensic psychological assessment of Verma by CFSL-Delhi. These tests, along with expert opinions and circumstantial evidence, established Verma’s involvement in Bajpai’s murder conclusively.
Verma was apprehended on January 24, 2012, and following an extensive investigation, the CBI filed a consolidated charge-sheet on April 20, 2012, against him in the Court of Special Judicial Magistrate, CBI Cases, Lucknow.
During the trial proceedings, the CBI presented compelling evidence, examined 44 witnesses, and submitted 66 documents and 16 material objects, all of which contributed to the conviction of the accused.
