Disgraced former Haryana DGP SPS Rathore's counsel wife Abha on Tuesday in Chandigarh, claimed before a court that the complaint by Ruchika Girhotra had forged signature of the victim.
"Certain letters in the signature done by Ruchika on memorandum are entirely different and the Investigation Officer too had admitted this in the trial court," Abha submitted before the Punjab and Haryana High Court which is conducting day-to-day hearing on Rathore's revision petition challenging his conviction in Ruchika molestation case.
The trial court could not give its findings on the forgery issue, she contended. Justice Jitendra Chauhan, however, asked Abha whether her contention will make material difference in this case.
Continuing her arguments, Abha, who was assisted by her lawyer daughter Priyanjali, contended that the prosecution did not bring any document expert to verify Ruchika's signature in the memorandum which later turned a complaint against Rathore. She alleged that the letter on Ruchika's suspension from the Haryana Lawn Tennis Association (HLTA) on grounds of indiscipline "was tampered with by Anand Parkash," father of prime witness Aradhana. She claimed Prakash took out the actual document from the HLTA notice board and kept it in his custody and did not hand it over to former DGP R R Singh who held the inquiry in the case.
"The document was even cut from below which is not admissible," she contended.
She contended that the prosecution theory that Rathore went to the house of Ruchika had been disapproved as during cross examination her father SC Girhotra agreed thrice that Rathore went to his house and once admitted he did not do so.
"The shifting of stand by Girhotra shows that he is unreliable," she contended.
Abha contended that the R R Singh's report was "biased and one-sided against Rathore."
The High Court heard Abha's arguments for about an hour before adjourning the case till tomorrow.
Abha had on May 26 filed a revision petition in the High Court for suspension of sentence and grant of bail to Rathore, a day after the session's court awarded him 18-month jail term for molesting budding tennis player Ruchika.
68-year-old Rathore has been lodged in the high security Burail jail since May 25.
Ruchika had committed suicide three years after the molestation incident on August 12, 1990. PTI
