Geetika suicide: Kanda charged with rape, abetment of suicide

New Delhi, May 10 (IANS) A Delhi Court Friday framed charges against ex-Haryana minister Gopal Goyal Kanda for raping and abetting the suicide of former flight attendant Geetika Sharma.

District Judge S.K. Sarvaria also framed charges of abeting rape and suicide of Geetika against Kanda's employee Aruna Chaddha.

They have also been charged with criminal conspiracy, forgery under the Indian Penal Code and Information Technology Act for hacking of computer and sending offensive or false messages.

"Prima facie charges under sections 306 (abetment of suicide), 120 B (criminal conspiracy), 468 (forgery with intention to cheat), 469 (forgery with intention to harm reputation) and 471 (using forged documents as genuine) are made out against Gopal Kanda and Aruna Chadha," the court said.

"Further, prima facie charges under sections 376 (rape) and 377 (unnatural sex) are made out against Kanda and charge under section 376 read with 109 (abetment to rape) is made out against Chadha," said the district judge, who after framing charges, sent the matter for trial before the fast track court dealing with sexual offence cases.

The court has fixed the matter for May 27 for recording of prosecution's evidence.

From now on, the name of the victim cannot be mentioned in future as the court Friday converted the suicide case into a sexual offence case. The Delhi Police in its chargesheet had not invoked offences of rape and unnatural sex against the accused.

Geetika, 23, was found hanging from the ceiling of a room at her Ashok Vihar house in north Delhi on August 5 last year.

She left behind two suicide notes blaming Kanda and Chaddha, a former official in Kanda's now-defunct MDLR Airlines where Geetika had worked. Both are now in judicial custody and have denied any involvement in the suicide.

Who is this Gopal Kanda?

Gopal Goyal Kanda was born on 29 December 1965 in Sirsa, Haryana, India.

His father, Murli Dhar Kanda, is a lawyer in Sirsa. His ancestors were market traders and his surname, Kanda, refers to the iron weights used by such people.

He lived with his family in a two-room apartment above their shop.

A school drop-out, according to The Times of India he has been "Electrician, shoe shop owner, real estate broker, industrialist, car dealer, Tara Baba devotee, airline owner and politician". He uses his surname "Kanda" for political and religious purposes, while for business purposes and on official papers his name is Gopal Kumar Goyal.

In 1997, Kanda moved to Gurgaon where he went into the real estate business.

He later became a party worker for the INLD party and an aide to Om Prakash Chautala who became Chief Minister of Haryana in 1998 after the INLD won the elections.

INLD lost the 2005 general elections in Haryana and Kanda started building relationships with Indian National Congress (INC) party leaders. In the 2009 election in Sirsa he defeated INLD's candidate Padam Jain by a margin of 6521 votes.

He supported the INC led by Bhupinder Singh Hooda in the formation of government in Haryana.

The INC had 40 legislators and to form the government it needed at least another six.

Kanda was among a group of independents who decided to support Bhupinder Hooda as chief minister.

He was rewarded with a cabinet post and made Minister of State for Home in Haryana.

He was facing court trial in ten cases at time when he was made the minister.

Please note the last sentence in the above report which I have marked in red.

Kanda was facing court trial in ten cases when he was made a minister.

The INLD accepted him and then the INC accepted him and I am sure even the BJP would have accepted him.

But first of all the Election Commission accepted.

If the Election Commission had weeded him at the electioneering stage, probably Geetika would have been alive today.

Would we appoint such a person as our employee if we knew he had ten court cases against him?

NO!

The why does the election commission allow such persons to contest elections?

Let the EC reject such persons who have cases against them and let them go to the courts.

I am sure, the courts too would not want such persons to become our leaders.

And see the irony, he was made Home Minister in Haryana, just like Raja Bhaiya of UP being made a Police Minister