Chandigarh: Delhi Police today took into custody from Sirsa a relative of absconding former Haryana Minister Gopal Kanda, embroiled in air-hostess Geetika Sharma’s suicide case.
Sources said that Bunty Bansal, son-in-law of Kanda’s brother-in-law, was taken away after being questioned by the police team that was headed by a DCP rank officer, in connection with a call he had made to Nepal yesterday.
A nearly 25-member Delhi Police team swooped on the Sirsa residence of the suspect in the wee hours and after brief questioning took him into custody. Amid reports that Kanda may have slipped into Nepal, the sources said that police questioned Bansal, who is a contractor, about the nearly 40-minute call to somewhere in Nepal.
Initially, the Delhi Police had reached the house of Bansal’s associate in whose name the SIM card was said to be registered. When questioned, he told the team that though the SIM was in his name, but it had always been in Bansal’s possession after which they landed at the latter’s house at Sirsa. A week back too, Delhi police team had raided various establishments, including the palatial residence of Gopal Kanda at Sirsa.
On both occasions, police choose the wee hours to conduct the raids. Kanda, an Independent MLA from Sirsa, has been booked in Geetika Sharma suicide case by the Delhi Police.
Sharma (23), a former air hostess with Kanda’s now defunct MDLR airline, alleged in her suicide note last week that she was ending her life due to harassment by Kanda and MDLR official Aruna Chaddha. Kanda and Chaddha had denied the allegations. Geetika was found hanging in her flat in north west Delhi on August 5.
Kanda, an Independent MLA who held Home, Urban Bodies and Industry and Commerce portfolios, resigned the following day.
On August 14, Delhi Police had opposed Kanda’s bail plea in the Delhi High Court saying it needed to quiz him to find the missing computers and other crucial evidence.
Meanwhile, on the defensive over the actions of Gopal Goyal Kanda, Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda Thursday said his government was not protecting the former minister, accused of abetting the suicide of Geetika Sharma.
Kanda, who was Haryana’s minister of state for home and urban local bodies till earlier this month, has been in hiding for the last nearly 10 days after his name figured in a case registered by the Delhi Police following the suicide by Delhi-based former flight attendant Geetika Sharma.
Geetika, 23, had blamed Gopal Kanda and another official of his now-defunct MDLR Airlines, Aruna Chadha, for harassing her and forcing her to commit suicide. Talking to media here Thursday, Hooda made it clear that the state government was not protecting its former minister.
He said the state government would help the Delhi Police, if asked, in the case involving Kanda.
The former minister, whose whereabouts remain a mystery, has not joined investigations with the Delhi Police so far.
Teams of the Delhi Police have, in recent days, raided various properties and offices owned by and linked to Kanda to arrest him.
His palatial five-acre farmhouse on the outskirts of Sirsa town, 300 km from here, has been raided thrice by the Delhi Police but they could not find him. The Sirsa house was raided Wednesday night also.
The Delhi Police have detained a youth, Bunty, who is linked to the former minister, in order to reach Kanda. Gopal Kanda is an independent legislator from Sirsa assembly constituency.
Hooda said the opposition parties were unnecessarily blaming his government for protecting Kanda.
Hooda said: “The law is taking its own course. The opposition has no issue except criticising the government. Mr Kanda should join the investigation.” (Agencies)