Contending that mere suspicion could not be the basis for framing charge against any accused, their counsel Tirthankar Ghosh submitted before City Sessions Court Chief Judge Kundan Kumar Kumai that the eight women should be discharged from the case.
"So far as the women accused are concerned, there is nothing against them to implicate them for criminal conspiracy, common intention or criminal intimidation as alleged by the CBI," he told the court.
He claimed that the Central Bureau of Investigation's (CBI) case appeared to be that Tamang believed in democracy, while the GJM did not, and added that the prosecution's case was based on the "alleged political animosity" between Tamang's AIGL and the GJM.
The CBI has claimed that it was a premeditated murder to prevent any other political party from holding meetings or rallies in the Darjeeling hills, where the GJM held sway through "coercive" measures.
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The CBI has prayed for framing of charges against the accused, among whom are the top brass of the GJM, including its president Bimal Gurung, his wife and GJM women's wing chief Asha, Roshan Giri, Col (retd) Ramesh Alley, former MLA Harka Bahadur Chetri, Binay Tamang and Rabin Subba.
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