The Hindu : National : Best bakery case: defence seeks `original' document

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Oct 20, 2004

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National

Best bakery case: defence seeks `original' document

By Our Special Correspondent

MUMBAI, OCT. 19. The defence in the Best Bakery case re-trial has sought the "original" document of the forensic analysis of some bones found at the site of the incidentin Baroda. It has alleged that there was a discrepancy between the document submitted in the court today and the copies of the same given to it as part of the charge sheet.

D.S. Jambaulikar, defence counsel, said Dr. Shabbirali S. Syed, professor and head of the department of anatomy at the PDU Medical College, Rajkot, had produced a report detailing his examination of the bones found at the site of the Best Bakery.

Mr. Jambaulikar compared the document with the one he had been given along with the charge sheet, and found that what Dr. Syed produced was a "tampered document."

Some changes had been made in the form of "corrections and additions" in the copy Dr. Syed submitted, which were not there in the original. The defence has asked for the original of the copies given to the court initially.

Verification

In his testimony, Dr. Syed said he had received a letter from the police plus a sealed box containing some partly burnt and charred bones for analysis. He verified the bone samples in court, and confirmed that they were the same items he had examined.

"After examining the bones we issued a certificate which said that the bones were of human origin and they could not be of the same person. Some of the smaller pieces of bones belonged to a person above 18 years of age," he said.

Dr. Syed, who, at that time, was an associate professor at the department of anatomy, Baroda Medical College, said the size, shape and contours of the bones indicated that they were human.

"Based on my experience and knowledge, I say they belong to more than one person as the examination of the maxilla and the teeth sockets inside can reveal the age of the person," he added.

Two persons are missing from the Bakery and the prosecution is trying to find out if these bones belonged to them. DNA tests could not conducted on the bones as they were charred.

Earlier, Ashok R. Vaghela, scientific officer at the Forensic Science Laboratory, Baroda, said he had collected bones and other evidence from the Best Bakery site and asked for a forensic examination of the evidence.

Mr. Vaghela, in his testimony, said there was a heap of burnt bones and a piece which was something like a portion of a jaw when he visited the site.

These were sealed into a bag and sent for examination. In the house adjoining the bakery, he found bloodstains and primary testing was done to verify if it was indeed blood. Soil samples were then collected and sent for analysis, he said.

The cross examination of witnesses will continue tomorrow.

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