Elgar Parishad: Court questions defence on report that states evidence was planted

Mumbai, April 10: The special National Investigation Agency (NIA) court hearing the Elgar Parishad case on Thursday sought a clarification on the report of Arsenal Consulting, which claimed that the evidence produced by the prosecution was planted after the computer of one of the accused was hacked.

The report was submitted by the team of defence lawyers for Dr Anand Teltumbde while arguing his bail recently. The court, after perusal of the report, observed that though the report is addressed to the special court, it has not reached the court, the Hindustan Times reported.

“It appears that it is the copy of the report addressed to the court in the present proceeding. On inquiry with the sheristedar [court officer], it is reported that the court has not received such a report. Record reveals that at no point of time, the agency, Arsenal Consulting, was called upon by this court to submit the report,” read the court’s noting of Friday.

The court then asked that if the copy addressed to the court has not been received, how was it accessed by the defence lawyers. Teltumbde’s lawyers have been asked to clarify “how he got custody of the document, which has been purportedly addressed to the court.”

Special public prosecutor Prakash Shetty objected to the report which the defence relied upon while seeking bail for Teltumbde. The NIA, which submitted its reply on Thursday, said, “The authenticity of the report remains a question. It cannot be admitted at this stage. It has to be tested at the time of the trial.”

The Arsenal report states that Rona Wilson’s [another accused] laptop and thumb drive had been compromised with for 22 months before it was seized by Pune Police. The report further states that the hacker had planted the alleged letters that incriminated Wilson and others in the laptop using a malware which was not known to Wilson.

https://www.hindustantimes.com/cities/others/elgaar-parishad-court-questions-defence-on-report-that-states-evidence-was-planted-101617999076295.html