The incident happened shortly after jury selection for the hush-money trial was completed
Businessman Vikas Malu's second wife, who skipped summons on Monday for questioning in connection with the death of veteran actor and filmmaker Satish Kaushik, will be issued a fresh notice, Delhi Police has said.
According to the police, she was called for questioning at 11am on Monday but did not show up.
Police said, so far, the statements of about 25 to 30 guests and staff members present at Malu's farmhouse on the night Kaushik died, have been recorded, and nothing suspicious has come to light so far.
"The postmortem report said he (Kaushik) died after suffering a cardiac arrest. We are also awaiting the FSL (Forensic Science Laboratory) and other reports which would shed further light on the matter. The relatives of the deceased (Satish Kaushik) have not raised suspicions of any foul play," an officer said.
He added that the blood and some other samples have been sent for tests at the forensic laboratory in Rohini, Delhi. FSL officials said the samples have been received and reports will be out soon.
"The blood test would determine if there was any intoxicant in his blood, while the stomach test would also be done to check for the presence of any substance", an FSL official added. "The reports will be handed over to the Delhi Police soon."
Earlier, on Monday, Malu's second wife said she won't cooperate in the probe until the investigating officer, who she accused of having a "suspicious role" in the matter, is changed.
"The above-mentioned complaint filed by you on [March 11, 2023], is being enquired by the undersigned. There are reasonable grounds to [question] you to ascertain facts and circumstances in relation to the enquiry of the above-mentioned complaint. Therefore, you are requested to join the enquiry before the undersigned on [March 13, 2023] at 11am, at your home or any other place convenient to you," Delhi Police said in a notice.
The woman's lawyer, Rajendra Chhabra, said Vikas Malu's wife won't cooperate in the investigation pertaining to the "suspicious" role of the investigating officer.
Speaking to ANI, Chhabra said, "The role of the inspector, under whose supervision the whole investigation is taking place, is already under [the] scanner. My client (Vikas Malu's wife) will not join the investigation till the inspector is changed."
The lawyer said an email has also been sent to the Delhi Police Commissioner on this matter, and he has been informed of the "suspicious" role of the inspector.
"The woman had made rape allegations against her husband Vikas Malu, and the same inspector was probing the case. He was removed from the investigation for allegedly tampering with the evidence. Now, again after my client's complaint, the same inspector has been assigned the probe, which is surprising," Chhabra added.
Kaushik, who had been visiting someone in the national capital, died on March 9. He had celebrated Holi with friends, after which he went to sleep at around 9.30pm, the police said earlier.
Around 12am, Kaushik's health deteriorated. He called his manager and told him that he was having difficulty breathing, authorities noted, adding that his manager took him to Fortis Hospital in Gurugram, where he passed away at 1.43am – despite being given Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR).
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