Ajay Katara arrested over kidnapping charges

Ghaziabad (UP), Oct 3 (ANI): Ajay Katara, a key witness in the much publicized Nitish Katara murder case, was arrested by the Ghaziabad Police late on Thursday night on kidnapping charges.

Ajay is accused of trying to kidnap a distant relative of Uttar Pradesh politician DP Yadav, whose son Vikas Yadav has been awarded life sentence in connection with the Nitish Katara murder case.

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Vikas's cousin Vishal Yadav has also been sentenced to life in the case. Vikas and Vishal had allegedly abducted Katara, the son of an IAS officer, from a marriage party in Ghaziabad on the intervening night of February 16-17, 2002. The victim's body was later recovered from a village in Uttar Pradesh's Bulandshahr District.

According to the prosecution, Katara, a business executive, was killed by the two accused as they did not approve of their sister Bharti Yadav's growing proximity with him.

Earlier, the prosecution had produced evidence of Ajay Katara having seen the accused taking Nitish to their car on the fateful night near Hapur Chungi in Ghaziabad.

The accused contended that the chain of events in the case remained incomplete as none of the prosecution witnesses had either supported the abduction or identified the main accused.

Ajay Katara's testimony was also challenged on the premise that the police recorded his statement over 20 days after the crime. (ANI)