Krishna the prime accused in Aarushi murder: CBI

It is official now. Krishna, the compounder of Dr Rajesh Talwar, has been made the prime accused in the Aarushi murder case.

The Central Bureau of Investigation which made Krishna's arrest public on Friday has booked him under Sections 302 (murder), 120-B (conspiracy) and 201of the Indian Penal Code (disappearance of evidence).

CBI sources told rediff.com that they had corroborated the statements made by Krishna during questioning and also during the narco-analysis tests.

Even as the CBI has booked Krishna under three counts in the IPC, they continue to dig into more leads into the case. Krishna had spoken of the involvement of a second person being involved in the murder. In this regard, several persons, including an industrialist, were questioned on Friday.

The law states that if Krishna is convicted under Section 302 of the IPC, he could face imprisonment for life or even a death penalty. If convicted under Sections 120-B the accused as per the IPC could be sentenced to life imprisonment.

For an offence committed under Section 201, the punishment is 7 years. However the law clearly states that if found guilty on all three counts then the accused will have to undergo the maximum punishment and in this case it would be the punishment mandated under Section 302.

Legal experts say that if the case involves more than one person, the accused is booked for conspiracy. The CBI may have found that the accused had tried to destroy evidence and also conceal the weapon and hence he was being booked under Section 201 of the Indian Penal Code.

Sources indicate that Dr Talwar may not get away in the case completely and the CBI is trying to establish the motive behind the killing. Sources also say that Talwar may have been one of the conspirators in the case and the CBI still has some work left before they can completely establish the fact.

There is a possibility of Krishna being subject to a narco-analysis test once again in order to get more details regarding the conspiracy. However as of now, the CBI maintains that Krishna is the man who killed both Aarushi and Hemraj, a fact that family of the accused denies outright.

Family members of Krishna said New Delhi on Friday that he was innocent and also added that he was with them both the fateful as well as the intervening night.