Uttarakhand govt requested to provide security to Nitish Katara’s mother in Dehradun: Centre to HC

The high court had earlier asked the Centre to respond to her plea seeking direction to the Centre to grant her protection in Uttarakhand. On October 3, 2016, the Supreme Court had awarded a 25-year jail term without any benefit of remission to Vikas Yadav and his cousin Vishal for their role in the sensational kidnapping and killing of Katara.

The Delhi High Court was informed by the Centre on Friday that it has requested Uttarakhand government to provide adequate security to Nilam Katara, mother of murdered business executive Nitish Katara, and fears for her life as she will be soon shifting to Dehradun. The central government said the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has also asked Delhi Police, which has been providing security to Nilam here, to give her protected accommodation whenever she visits the national capital for pursuing pending legal matters in courts here or for medical reasons.

Justice Vibhu Bakhru asked the Centre to evaluate the threat perception to Nilam and file an affidavit and listed the matter for further hearing on January 14 next year. During the hearing, advocate Pradeep Dey, representing Nilam, urged that she be also provided security during transit to and from Delhi and Dehradun and as she will also have to travel through some part of Uttar Pradesh in between, so UP government be also asked to provide her protection during that period.

On this, the Centre's counsel sought time to file an affidavit. Central government standing counsel Gaurang Kanth submitted that Delhi Police has already been providing security to Nilam and the MHA has advised the police to continue it as per their local threat assessment.

He submitted that a letter was written by the MHA to the Uttarakhand government on November 19, requesting it to provide adequate security to Nilam Katara in their jurisdiction, based on her local threat perception during her stay in Dehradun. The high court was informed that Nilam has been provided security here since 2002 and she will be shifting to Dehradun from Delhi at the end of the month due to financial and other issues.

Her counsel had submitted that Nilam feared for her life and the high court has the power to direct the central authority to provide her security at both the places, Delhi and Dehradun. The high court had earlier asked the Centre to respond to her plea seeking direction to the Centre to grant her protection in Uttarakhand.

On October 3, 2016, the Supreme Court had awarded a 25-year jail term without any benefit of remission to Vikas Yadav and his cousin Vishal for their role in the sensational kidnapping and killing of Katara. Another co-convict Sukhdev Pehalwan was also handed down a 20-year jail term in the case.

Prior to this, the Delhi High Court, while upholding the life imprisonment awarded to Vikas and Vishal Yadav by the trial court, had specified a 30-year sentence, without any remission, to both of them. It had awarded a 25-year jail term to third convict Pehalwan. All three were convicted and sentenced for kidnapping Nitish Katara from a marriage party on the intervening night of February 16-17, 2002 and then killing him for his alleged affair with Bharti Yadav, the sister of Vikas.

Bharti is the daughter of Uttar Pradesh politician D P Yadav who is in jail in connection with another murder case. Katara was murdered as Vishal and Vikas Yadav did not approve of his affair with Bharti because they belonged to different castes, the lower court had said in its verdict.

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