KANPUR: Sixteen years after the brutal murder of a television journalist, a Kanpur court has convicted and sentenced four people to life imprisonment.
Among those sentenced are the victim’s colleague, her two brothers, and a family friend.
In June 2009, the body of 26-year-old Brijesh Gupta was found wrapped in cloth inside a car parked in Govind Nagar. He had sustained multiple injuries.
According to government counsel Gaurendra Tripathi, the court examined nine prosecution witnesses before finding the accused guilty. Life imprisonment was awarded to Kanika Grover — a newsreader at the same TV channel as Brijesh — her brothers Sunny and Monney, and their friend Surjeet Singh alias Shunty.
Kanika’s mother, Alka Grover, and her uncle, Rajeev Kumar, were sentenced to five years in prison for their role in destroying evidence.
All six, who had been out on bail during the trial, were taken into custody following the verdict.
The case dates back to June 14, 2009, when a resident of Ratanlal Nagar noticed a car with a “Press” sticker parked in the area for an extended time. Upon opening the car, police found Brijesh’s body inside.
Brijesh’s brother, Prabhat Kumar, later filed a complaint at Govind Nagar police station. He reported that Brijesh had said he was going to drop Kanika and others home. When he did not return that night, the family began searching for him. They eventually found his body in the parked car. His licensed firearm and gold ornaments were missing.
Tripathi said police investigations revealed that Kanika and her family bore a grudge against Brijesh, accusing him of regularly harassing her. Acting on a tip-off, police first arrested Surjeet, who confessed and led authorities to the other accused. He admitted the crime was committed at their home, after which they wrapped the body in cloth and placed it in Brijesh’s car.
District Government Counsel Dilip Awasthi added that Kanika’s family also believed Brijesh had falsely implicated her father in a criminal case, which intensified their animosity towards him.
