Shehla murder: Prime accused Zahida records statement before court

Indore: The main accused in RTI activist Shehla Masood murder case Zahida Pervez today recorded her statement before the special court here even as her assistant Saba Farooqui refused to do so. “Zahida today recorded her statement in the closed-door hearing before the Special CBI court of Judicial Magistrate Dr Subhra Singh,” senior public prosecutor Hemant Shukla told reporters. [caption id=“attachment_244458” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“The BJP MLA who is accused in the case underwent a polygraph test in Delhi today. PTI”]  [/caption] Zahida, an architect from Bhopal, is accused of plotting the killing of the 32-year-old activist, allegedly over her growing proximity to BJP MLA Dhruv Narayan Singh. The MLA was today subjected to a polygraph test by the CBI in Delhi. Zahida had earlier agreed to undergo lie-detection test but later changed her stand. “Zahida recorded her statement under section 164 of CrPc,” Shukla said. Zahida’s assistant Saba Farooqui, who is also an accused in the case, however, refused to record her statement. “Yesterday, Saba had agreed to make a statement under section 164 of CrPC but today she refused recording it (the statement). It is up to her whether to make the statement during the proceedings now or later on,” Shukla said. Like Zahida, Saba too had refused undergoing the polygraph test. Earlier, the accused duo of Zahida and Saba were brought to the special court here from Indore district jail where they are lodged under judicial custody which ends on March 26. The third accused and alleged contract killer Shaikb alias ‘Danger’, who was remanded to judicial custody yesterday, told the court that he would record his statement after ten days. He is lodged in the Indore Central Jail. Meanwhile, Nafisa Khan, counsel for Zahida and Saba, said, “CBI has failed to found out the truth even after keeping the women in their custody for 14 days.” Meanwhile, replying to a query, Khan said, “the statement was recorded behind the closed door…usne kya bayan diya…court ke paas hai (whatever statement she has given is with the court). I will seek a copy of her statement from the court in a day or so”. When asked whether Saba would make any statement under section 164 of CrPC, the counsel replied,“I do not know…She may or may not, it is up to her”. When media persons tried to speak to Zahida after she emerged out from the court after recording her statement, she replied, “Jab maine jurm kiya hi nahin to kabool kyon karoongi” (Why will I confess when I have not committed any crime?). Shehla Masood was shot dead outside her residence at posh Koh-e-Fiza locality in Bhopal on August 16, 2011. PTI