Forensic team probes burnt activist's car after one week

Times of India: Noida: Friday, May 09, 2014.

Police have shown a lackadaisical attitude in probing the mysterious death of 38-year-old whistleblower Chandra Mohan Sharma. It has taken a week for a forensic team to visit the spot where the RTI activist died after his car caught fire. There have been a couple of spells of rain in the past seven days, which would have drastically reduced their chances of finding substantial leads, if any, in the case.

On Thursday, forensic experts from Lucknow, Agra, Ghaziabad and Moradabad reached Greater Noida. Even as the team examined Sharma's car to get leads in the case, family members slammed police and district administration for the delay.

Savita Sharma, the victim's wife, alleged that cops had not wasted any time and deliberately moved the burnt car from the spot. "They could have destroyed important evidence in moving it. Also, the car was kept at the police post without security," Savita said.

Senior police officials, however, told TOI that according to forensic experts, rain and dousing the blaze by fire tenders would not destroy clues or substantial leads as they would come up in detailed and intensive chemical analysis. "We also took detailed photos of the spot where the car was found before moving it to the police post," said Anurag Singh, DSP, Greater Noida.

Police said the exhaustive examination of the burnt vehicle on Thursday lasted for nearly six hours. "The six-member team reached Eicher police post around 11 am. The assessment concluded around 5.30pm," Singh said.

The team of experts, headed by Dr Arun Sharma from Moradabad, was assisted by a two-member local FSL team from Gautam Budh Nagar. The team included chemical experts, a photographer and a videographer. A crane assisted the examination of the team by lifting the burnt car to different angles.

Police said the forensic team collected samples, including burnt objects, pieces of cloth, ash, etc, and also recovered two sets of keys and a phone charger belonging to the victim from the car.

Singh said the forensic reported could come within a week. "If it is delayed, the team would clarify the number of days the analysis would take," Singh said.

Sharma's charred body was found in his car near his house in Greater Noida on May 1. Police initially said it was an accidental death but lodged an FIR later after his family's complaint. The family suspects the role of land mafia in Sharma's death as the activist had blown the lid off corrupt land deals across Gautam Budh Nagar.

Sharma's autopsy report said he died due to asphyxiation and there were no external injuries on his body. Cops had also summoned experts from Chevrolet to examine the burnt car (an Aveo), who said the fire seemed to have started at the dashboard.

Sharma's family has also demanded a CBI probe into his death, fearing that facts of the case could be manipulated by police. Aam Aadmi Party, however, has sought UP government's intervention and demanded that it seek an immediate report from the district administration.