NEW DELHI: Carrying a bag and a jute bag each, dentist couple Rajesh and Nupur Talwar appeared emotionless as they tardily walked out of Ghaziabad’s Dasna Jail towards their freedom on Monday.
On Thursday, the Allahabad High Court had overturned a special CBI court’s judgment convicting them for killing their daughter Aarushi and their Nepalese domestic help Hemraj Banjade in May 2008. They had spent four years in prison. With signs of devastation and fatigue clearly visible on their face, their eyes frantically searched for someone amidst the invariably flashing media cameras and police protection.
Finally, welled-up emotions burst out the moment they spotted Rajesh’s brother Dinesh and their lawyers. The couple stood there for a moment, and then clung to Dinesh and cried unstoppably before being persuaded by the cops towards a car waiting for them. While the couple refused to speak to the media, Vandana Talwar, Rajesh’s sister-in-law, requested journalists to understand their state of mind and respect their privacy.
An hour after their release, the couple reached Nupur’s parents’ flat in Noida’s Jal Vayu Vihar. There, speaking to the media with folded hands, Dinesh said, “More than Rajesh and Nupur’s freedom, our fight was to clear Aarushi’s name, which was being linked with Hemraj. Today, he has got his daughter justice.”
“Ever since my daughter and son-in-law were arrested, we did not celebrate Diwali. But this year, it will be a celebration for us, although we will miss our Aarushi,” said Group Captain (retd.) BG Chitnis, Nupur’s father.
The Talwars will stay at Nupur’s parents’ house till Diwali and move to their house in Hauz Khas later.
Dasna Jail Superintendent Dadhiram Maurya said, “During their stay since 2013, the Talwars helped revive the dental department at the prison hospital."
“Before their release, they refused a remuneration of Rs 49,500 for their services to patients here. They have also assured the authorities that they would visit the jail every 15 days to attend to inmates.”