Soumya, Jigisha murder accused charged under MCOCA

New Delhi, April 8 (IANS) Delhi Police Wednesday invoked the stringent Maharashtra Control of Organised Crimes Act (MCOCA) against five men held for their role in the sensational murders of TV journalist Soumya Vishwanathan and IT executive Jigisha Ghosh in the national capital.

'We have slapped MCOCA against key accused Ravi Kapoor and his accomplices Amit Shukla, Baljeet Malik, Vijay Kumar and Ajay Sethi in connection with the murders,' Deputy Commissioner of Police (south) H.G.S. Dhaliwal told reporters here.

Now that the MCOCA has been applied, a deputy commissioner of police who is not in-charge of the investigation will record the confession of the accused and it can be used as evidence in the court.

Moreover, the accused cannot apply for bail for six months. An assistant commissioner of police is being made the investigation officer of the case, though in normal course the investigating officer is a police inspector.

Soumya, 25, was found dead in her car in Vasant Kunj area of south Delhi around 3.30 a.m. on Sep 30, 2008. She was shot in the back of her head while returning from work to her home in Sector-C of Vasant Kunj.

Jigisha was talking over her mobile phone and walking towards her home in the early hours of March 21 after being dropped by a cab of her employer Hewitt Associates at the gate of the Vasant Vihar apartment complex where she lived.

She was spotted by some criminals, who kidnapped, robbed and later killed her. Her body was found in Faridabad, Haryana, about 20 km from her home.