Taking stock: The big lessons from Arushi case

QUESTION EVERYTHING: Rajdeep Sardesai moderates the discussion on the role of media and police in the Arushi case.

          

ibnlive.com is on mobile now. Read news, watch videos
be a Citizen Journalist. Log on to m.ibnlive.com NOW!

Related Stories

• Cops seize Arushi Talwar's computer

• IBNLive Chat: Rajdeep on lessons from Arushi case

• Arushi victim of slander, Govt demands explanation

Top Headlines

Top Videos

Most Popular

• US sees 26/11 as model for future terrorism 

• Pak role in 26/11 attacks possible: Imran Khan 

• India convinced of Pak army role in Mumbai attacks 

• Delhi to run out of petrol by evening | Oil PSU strike on 

• Shiv Sena snubs Karkare's kin for being soft on Kasab 

• Bringing Satyam auditor PwC to book may not be easy 

• Biden to visit Pakistan today, may give India a skip 

• Trinamool's Firoza Bibi wins Nandigram by-election 

• Inflation declines to 10-month low, at 5.91 per cent 

• Noida rape: Boy confesses, Panchayat says not guilty 

• Oil PSU strike continues, consumers bear the brunt 

• Pak role in 26/11 attacks possible: Imran Khan 

• US backs India on 26/11 but Pak not listening 

• Satyam fiasco could affect Hyd metro rail project  

• Power slips out of Soren's hands yet again 

• Rampant criminal activities make Noida insecure  

• Not amused by starry tantrums? here are the fetishes 

• Watch: John Abraham's Aashayein stuck in the cans 

• Three Indian artists nominated for Grammys 

• Recession-hit US porn industry demands bailout 

• Pak role in 26/11 attacks possible: Imran Khan 

• Bringing Satyam auditor PwC to book may not be easy 

• Oil PSU strike continues, consumers bear the brunt 

• US backs India on 26/11 but Pak not listening 

• India screeching to halt as fuel runs out 

• Recession-hit US porn industry demands bailout 

• Noida rape: Boy confesses, Panchayat says not guilty 

• India convinced of Pak army role in 26/11 

• Sanjay in political fray, SP says Dutt's the man 

• Slumdog Millionaire sweeps Critics Choice Awards 

Photogallery

Find us on Facebook | Join IBNLive community

Stay ahead with G-Talk Buddy | Click now!

It’s perhaps curtains for the most intriguing whodunit of recent times. With the Central Bureau of Investigation admitting it has no evidence against Dr Rajesh Talwar in the murder of his daughter Arushi and manservant Hemraj, a sordid chapter in the murder most foul has finally drawn to a close.

However, as Talwar walks free, an innocent man, questions are being raised about the manner in which both the police and the media handled – or as some would say, bungled – the case. The Arushi-Hemraj case could easy be called a sorry spectacle of goof-ups and rumour-mongering.

In the first edition of Weekend Edition with Rajdeep Sardesai, CNN-IBN raised questions on the role of these two institutions and debated if the Talwars should sue either or both for defamation.

To discuss the issue on the show were Rajesh Talwar’s brother, Dinesh Talwar; Editor, National News, Star News, Deepak Chaurasia and Former DGP of UP, Prakash Singh.

Dinesh Talwar was the first to respond to the question and said suing the police or the media was not the priority for the Talwars, at least as of now. “We are getting these views from the media itself. Frankly speaking, our primary objective is to let Rajesh settle down and give him a chance to share his grief with the family – something he couldn’t do earlier,” he said.

Asked if the family felt embittered at the manner in which Talwar’s reputation was tarnished, Dinesh said the family was shocked and upset. “In a country that’s marching toward superpowerdom, this could happen. It’s disbelief,” he said.

Talwars: Victims of media madness?

If the Noida police botched up from day one, the media too came under considerable criticism for the manner in which it covered the case. In fact, many readers wrote in on ibnlive.com, expressing their bewilderment at the attitude of a certain section of the Fourth Estate. One of them wondered if it was right for journalists to “behave like Sherlock Holmes” and whether it was their responsibility now to restore the reputation of the Talwars.

However, Deepak Chaurasia would have none of it. Lashing out at the suggestion that media should apologise, Chaurasia said not everyone could be blamed for what a section of the media did. Fiercely defending the press, Chaurasia said it reflected what came from the Noida police and the CBI. “If you say it’s media madness, then we both are mad, Rajdeep. I did not produce the theory that Mr Talwar (sic) had a relationship or what was on between Arushi and Hemraj. Please ask IGP, Meerut Mr Singh how he could go live on national TV making those allegations. You, as a journalist do not sit here and make stories on your laptop. You have someone telling you that,” he said.

Read blogs