Nitish Katara murder case cost Rs 5.8 crore to exchequer

The 12-year-old Nitish Katara murder case has cost the state exchequer Rs 5.86 crore including nearly Rs 75 lakh spent on the security and upkeep of three convicts Vikas Yadav, Vishal Yadav and Sukhdev Pehelwan, Delhi High Court said today.

"The total expenditure incurred on this case by the exchequer is Rs 5.86 crores", a bench of justices Geeta Mittal and J R Midha said.

The court observed that as per Jail Administration data, the expenses incurred in boarding and lodging of the three convicts in jail during trial and thereafter was Rs 35.6 lakh while Rs 39.95 lakh were spent in their transportation, security and manpower from jail to court and hospitals during trial and thereafter.

Relying on the report of the Delhi State Legal Services Authority to probe the expenses incurred during the case besides other details, the bench noted that a total of Rs 3.89 crore was spent in providing protection to the prosecution witnesses including victim's mother, brother and cousin.

"Total expenditure in the witness protection comes to Rs 3.89 crores which includes expenses incurred by Delhi Police for providing protection to victim's mother Neelam Katara and brother Nitin Katara which was Rs 1.27 crores," it said.

The bench also noted that protection provided to prosecution witness and Nitish's relative Ajay Katara by the UP police, had costed Rs 62 lakh.

Besides the relatives of the victim, a total of Rs two crore were spent in providing protection to Special Public Prosecutor B S Joon, as per report from DCP (Security), it said.