Delhi’s Saket Court has ordered Gurugram Police to produce all records and forensic evidence in the Yuvraj Manchanda murder case by Sept 22. This follows an application by the victim’s sister alleging procedural lapses and a hasty cremation.
Expanding judicial scrutiny over the alleged procedural lapses surrounding the Yuvraj Singh Manchanda murder case, Delhi’s Saket Court has directed the Gurugram Police to produce all records, forensic evidence, and documentation concerning the recovery, identification, and subsequent cremation of the victim’s body by 12:30 PM on September 22. The direction came after an application filed by Manchanda’s sister, who raised serious concerns over the handling of the body by Gurugram Police and alleged that vital forensic evidence and personal belongings were mishandled or destroyed during an “extraordinarily hasty” cremation.
In its directive, the court has mandated Gurugram Police to submit complete official police logs and station records, forensic reports along with DNA samples and preserved biological material, and digital evidence including surveillance footage and call data records. The police have also been directed to produce complete Zonal Integrated Police Network (ZIPNET) database entries and detailed documentation pertaining to the identification, post-mortem, cremation, and recovery of personal items found on or near the body.
Arrests Made by Delhi Police
The development comes after the Delhi Police arrested two accused persons, Anya Vats and her associate Sanyam Sachdeva, in connection with the murder of 31-year-old Yuvraj Manchanda. South-East Delhi Deputy Commissioner of Police Vineet Kumar had earlier said that the accused, during interrogation, admitted to meeting Yuvraj and confessed to his murder. He said the body was disposed of in Gurugram’s Badshahpur area.
“On September 11, around 4.15 PM, a missing person report was filed for an individual named Yuvraj Manchanda. We discovered that the missing person, Yuvraj, worked as a sales manager at Adani Realty. On September 6, after having dinner at a restaurant in the Lajpat Nagar area, he left, stating he was heading to a meeting, but never returned home,” DCP Kumar had said.
He added that through technical analysis and other findings, police traced Anya Vats, a former associate of Yuvraj, as a suspect. Police teams later traced Anya and Sanyam to Uttarakhand.
According to police, the accused disclosed their involvement in the murder and disposal of the body near Badshahpur in Gurugram’s Sector 70 area. The police officer had said that Gurugram Police recovered a body on September 10 and, following standard operating procedures, conducted a post-mortem and cremated the remains.
“Later, when we showed photographs of the body and the recovered belongings to his family members, they identified the deceased as Yuvraj,” DCP Kumar said.
Family Alleges Discrepancies in Police Handling
The court’s order follows concerns raised by the victim’s family regarding the handling of the unidentified body, including recovery records, post-mortem details, DNA evidence and belongings recovered from the body.
Advocate Rajat Jain, a friend of the deceased, had earlier questioned the timeline of the recovery and handling of the body, citing ZIPNET entries. He alleged that the details showed the body was recovered on September 10, disposed of on September 14, and uploaded on ZIPNET on September 16.
The victim’s sister had also alleged that the family was not provided with the post-mortem report and personal belongings recovered from Yuvraj’s body.
Investigation Underway
The Delhi Police has secured five-day custody of the two accused for further questioning, while the investigation into other aspects of the case is underway. (ANI)
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