Nitish Katara murder case: Delhi HC issues notice on convict Vikas Yadav’s furlough plea

Yadav moved the high court after jail authorities rejected his request on October 29, citing the gravity of the offence.

The Delhi high court today issued notice on a plea filed by Vikas Yadav, convicted in the Nitish Katara murder case, after he sought a three-week furlough to spend time with his wife following his recent marriage.

Vikas Yadav is serving a life term for abducting and killing Nitish Katara on the intervening night of February 16-17, 2002. (HT File Photo)

A bench of Justice Ravinder Dudeja sought response from the Delhi Police, Director General (Prisons), Katara’s mother Neelam, and witness Ajay Katara’s response and fixed November 27 as the next date of hearing.

Yadav moved the high court after jail authorities rejected his request on October 29, citing the gravity of the offence, the severity of the sentence imposed, and the victim’s apprehension that the convict might flee the country, disrupt public order, or cause irreparable harm to the victim’s family.

In his petition, argued by senior advocate Vikas Pahwa, Yadav said his furlough plea was rejected arbitrarily and without due consideration of the fact that he was previously granted interim bail by the Supreme Court for four-and-a-half months on account of his mother’s medical treatment, followed by extension on the ground of his marriage.

“During this period, while he was out on bail, no complaint was ever made against the petitioner regarding any threat faced by respondent number 3 (Nilam Katara) and respondent number 4 (Ajay Katara) and even till date,” the petition said.

It further stated that Yadav has been in continuous custody for 23 years without ever being granted furlough and now seeks release to spend time with his wife following his recent marriage. He also contended that he meets the eligibility criteria under Rule 1223 of the Delhi Prison Rules, 2018, which permits furlough for prisoners demonstrating good conduct. “The jail authorities failed to appreciate that security has already been provided to Nilam and Ajay, herein for the last more than 20 years, and thus the alleged apprehension of the respondents holds no ground,” the plea said.

Yadav, besides seeking furlough, has filed a separate petition seeking release from jail, which is set to be heard on December 9. On September 19, the court had asked the Delhi Police to verify whether Yadav was married in July or September. This was after Katara’s mother urged the court to initiate perjury proceedings against Yadav, alleging that he misled the court by seeking interim bail on the grounds of marriage, despite tying the knot in July at ‘The Aura’ in Sector 74, Noida.

Katara was abducted from a marriage party on the intervening night of February 16 and 17, 2002, and then killed over his alleged relationship with Vikas’s sister Bharti Yadav.

The trial court in May 2008 found former Uttar Pradesh politician DP Yadav’s son Vikas, Vishal Yadav and their aide, contract killer Sukhdev Pehelwan, guilty of kidnapping and burning Katara to death and awarded them life sentences. The high court in February 2015, while upholding the life imprisonment awarded to Vikas and Vishal, specified a 30-year sentence without any remission and awarded a 25-year jail term without remission to Sukhdev. The Supreme Court in July 2016 modified Vikas and Vishal’s sentence to 25 years without remission and Sukhdev’s sentence to a 20-year jail term without remission to Sukhdev.

On July 29, the Supreme Court directed Sukhdev’s forthwith release, but dismissed Vikas’s petition against the condition directing him to remain in jail for 25 years without remission and granted him the liberty to approach the Delhi High Court. The Supreme Court in August 2017 had rejected Yadav’s plea seeking review of the 2016 order.