New Delhi: Delhi High Court recently granted bail to two accused in the murder case of Dr Yogesh Chander Paul in Jangpura in May 2024, citing prolonged trial and the fact that they had spent two years in jail.Granting relief to Himanshu Joshi and Basanti, Justice Purushaindra K Kaurav noted that only one witness had been examined. “Trial is at the stage of prosecution evidence, and only one out of the total 46 prosecution witnesses have been examined so far. The trial is, therefore, not likely to conclude in the near future.” HC added that there was no material on record to show the accused had caused the delay.“Bearing in mind the long incarceration… the nature of the offence, which is circumstantial in nature, this court is of the opinion that the applicants are entitled to the grant of regular bail,” the judge observed.According to the prosecution, the doctor was murdered and his house was looted in a conspiracy hatched by his trusted maid, Basanti. Alleging their likely role in a larger conspiracy to commit such crimes, police said the accused were not entitled to bail.The counsel for the accused submitted that the entire prosecution story was based on circumstantial evidence and the disclosure statements. There was no recovery from the accused and they were not even present at the spot during the incident.The counsel for Basanti contended that the fact that she had worked for the deceased family for the past 25 years should not be the only ground to implicate her. It was also submitted that she was not aware of the criminal intent of the co-accused persons and has no prior criminal record.Additional public prosecutor Shoaib Haider claimed that there was strong circumstantial evidence against Basanti on the basis of call details of Joshi with the other accused persons and the CCTV footage.
