Sharma’s counsel S P Minocha took over two months to counter the prosecution’s contention that the Haryana-cadre officer was the mastermind behind the murder of The Indian Express journalist. The prosecution has also named five co-accused in the case.

Summing up his arguments before Additional Sessions Judge Rajender Kumar Shastri, Minocha raised doubts on the veracity of investigations into the case, which he said were motivated “under force from the then BJP government.”

Notably, Sharma had earlier accused late BJP leader Pramod Mahajan of his involvement in the case.

Minocha claimed that material discrepancies in the form of alleged manipulations of documentary evidences as well as “deliberate improvements” in the statements of key witnesses, had made the investigation of the case “tainted.”

“When these things (discrepancies) are taken together bit by bit, it creates a lot of cloud on the veracity of the investigation,” said Minocha.