The cylinder blast angle in the alleged Greater Noida dowry death has been ruled out by the police, who say that an empty thinner bottle and a lighter recovered from the house where the victim was allegedly set afire by her in-laws are key evidence.
Nikki Bhati, 28, died of burn injuries after allegedly being set afire by her husband Vipin and in-laws on August 21 in their house in Greater Noida’s Sirsa. Among key evidence is videos recorded by Nikki’s sister Kanchan, claiming to be of the day of the incident.
Sisters Nikki and Kanchan were married into the Bhati family, to two brothers, in 2016.
The case has been in the news due to continuous developments and claims, one of which is that a cylinder blast caused burn injuries to Nikki, something that even she reportedly told the hospital where she was rushed to.
Police reveal by Nikki made cylinder blast statement
The police investigation has ruled out any cylinder blast and recovered an empty thinner bottle and lighter from the house, key evidence in the case.
Kasna station house officer (SHO) Dharmendra Shukla said Nikki may have deliberately concealed the truth as she did not want anyone to go to jail.
“It is believed she did not want anyone to be sent behind bars, which is why she did not blame anyone in her last words,” an earlier HT report quotes SHO Shukla as saying.
The investigators cited above, on condition of anonymity, said Nikki Bhati probably went with the cylinder blast claim to avoid criminally implicating her in-laws in order to protect her sister as she was married into the same family.
The police investigation confirmed there had been no cylinder blast.
The police team that photographed Nikki’s kitchen, found it intact. Instead, they recovered an empty thinner bottle and a lighter, both sent for forensic analysis. Her autopsy confirmed death due to burn injuries.
Initially, Nikki’s family resisted a post-mortem, agreeing only after police intervention.
“We were not in favour of a post-mortem to avoid any additional damage to her dead body,” her brother, Vicky Payla, told HT on Wednesday.
“After a brief conversation, they agreed, and later the body was handed back to them,” SHO Shukla.
Kanchan told the police she heard screams and rushed to find Nikki engulfed in flames, on the stairs, while Vipin stood nearby.
“Kanchan tried to douse the fire, holding a mobile phone in one hand while sprinkling water with the other. She also recorded part of the incident. Soon after, she fainted and Nikki was rushed to hospital,” the officer said, requesting anonymity.
Fresh evidence, including the hospital memo citing a gas cylinder blast, CCTV footage of husband Vipin Bhati and individual statements, have twisted the case. On Tuesday, an undated CCTV video purportedly of outside a shop near the Bhati family’s house, claimed to be of the time when the incident happened. The video showed a man, said to be Vipin Bhati, near the shop.
All Vipin’s immediate family members — his mother Daya, father Satveer, and brother Rohit (Kanchan’s husband) — have been arrested.