DARJEELING, July 22, 2005
C Mukherjee
NRI press
Three policemen from UK headed by Mr Alan Betts,
came to Darjeeling yesterday to hand over cash awards
to the persons who had tipped the police about NRI
Maninder Pal Singh Kohli.
British police and the tabloid Sun had neen announced
a reward of Rs. 50 lakh for anyone providing information
on the whereabouts of Maninderpal Singh Kohli, named
as the prime suspect in the rape and murder of Hannah
Foster, 17, near her home in Southampton, England
in March 2003
The persons who received the cash reward for helping
the police are Mr Jason Lepcha, Mr Ajay Rathoria,
Mr Dhiraj Rai, Mr Hemanth Khati and Mr Vivek Tamang.
“The reward is of secondary importance. I am
happy that we were able to help the police catch the
criminal,” said Mr Lepcha. It was learnt that
the team had a secret meeting with the persons here
in Darjeeling and has already left for Kalimpong to
meet the recipients there.
An NRI (non resident Indian) from Chandigarh,
he was the prime accused in the rape and murder of
the 17-year-old British girl, Hannah Claire Foster.
She was murdered on 10 March 2003 after being kidnapped
and raped. After this incident, Maninder Pal Singh
Kohli came down to Kalimpong. He stayed at a hotel
in Darjeeling as Rohan Mehta for 40 days.
Kohli was befriended by Mr Jason Lepcha. It was Mr
Lepcha who called the hotline after seeing Kohli’s
photograph in a newspaper.
Kohli was staying in Kalimpong as Dr Mike Davis
where he also married a local native girl, Ms
Bharati Das , on 19 June 2004. He was working as a
doctor there. He was caught at Panighatta on the India-Nepal
border on 15 July 2004. He was kept in police custody
till 29 August in Kalimpong and later handed over
to the CBI.
