Nine months after 28-year-old Greater Noida resident Nikki Bhatti succumbed to serious injuries at her home, her family has reached a settlement with her in-laws accused of setting her on fire for dowry, the woman’s father said on Wednesday.
Nikki’s parents agreed to transfer the property to her son as part of the settlement, her father Bikari Singh told HT.
“Yes, we reached a settlement. They transferred the property to Nicky’s son,” he said.
Read also | Mind the Gap: The Death and Life of Nikki Bhatti
The key witness becomes hostile
This came as a Uttar Pradesh government counsel said Nikki’s sister Kanchan – who was married into the same family and is the key witness in her sister’s murder – had become aggressive before a local court in Noida about 20 days ago. The next hearing is scheduled for June 10.
Kanchan, Singh, who was living with her parents in Roopvas village, will move in with her husband in a new house in Dadri, he said.
“There will be no interference from her in-laws in Kanchan’s marital life,” he said.
How did Nikki Bhatti die?
The settlement represents an exciting development in a case that has rocked the National Capital Region (NCR). Bhatti died at Delhi’s Safdarjung Hospital on August 21 last year, after her husband Vipin Bhatti and his mother Daya Bhatti poured flammable liquid on her and set her on fire at their home in Greater Noida, according to a Kanchan police complaint.
Read also | CCTV, eyewitness cited as HC granting bail to his mother-in-law in Nikki Bhatti murder case
Kanchan also alleged that her husband Rohit Bhatti and father-in-law Satveer were following the matter, adding that they beat her when she tried to intervene.
However, in her final statement, Kanchan told the court that no one was at home when the incident happened.
Police investigations
Noida Police filed an FIR on August 22 and investigations revealed that Vipin and his in-laws were against Nikki’s plan to reopen a salon she was running. They were reportedly angered by her social media activity, especially on Instagram, which she used to promote the salon.
The police have filed a case under sections 103 (murder), 115 (2) (voluntarily causing hurt) and 61 (2) (criminal conspiracy) of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) against Vipin, Rohit, Satveer and Daya at Kasna police station. Vipin was arrested after a gun battle on August 24. His mother was arrested the same evening. Satveer and Rohit were taken into custody the next day. On November 20, investigators submitted a 173-page indictment, charging the four with murder.
A government lawyer involved in the case said Kanchan “became aggressive a few weeks ago.”
“Kanchan told the court that there was no one inside the house when the incident happened. Nikki’s husband, Vipin, father-in-law, mother-in-law and sister-in-law were outside. So far, only her statements have been recorded,” said the lawyer, who requested anonymity.
“We will continue to fight the case, but when the main victim becomes aggressive, it weakens the case,” the lawyer added.
Rohit was released on bail on January 7 this year, followed by Satvir on January 28, and Daya on February 13. Vipin is still imprisoned in Loksar jail.
Vipin’s lawyer, Amit Bhatti, confirmed that Kanchan had recorded her statement before the court.
“We are fighting the case on merits. Based on the evidence, we will file a bail application for Vipin in the Supreme Court within a week,” he said.
The police are unaware of the settlement
A police officer involved in the investigation said he had not been informed of the settlement.
“They (Nikki’s family) have not submitted anything in writing to the police regarding their settlement. We have filed a charge sheet based on their allegations, and now the case is between the court and the families,” said the officer, who requested anonymity.
The police also said in the 173-page chargesheet, accessed by HT, that after scanning CCTV footage during investigation, the police also found that father-in-law Satveer and mother-in-law Daya were not at home at the time of the incident. They also found that Rohit’s mobile location was near Sirsa toll plaza.
