Our 1999 cover on the Jessica Lall murder

In the same way you can never say die for a politician, a story is never buried in India. On a perpetual slow burn, it has a habit of resurfacing, driven inexorably by politics, sluggish judicial process and ineffectual governance. There is always a store of stories from the past: the Ayodhya controversy, the ripple over reservations, and the saga of economic reform. There are also stories of lesser magnitude but high interest, such as the sensational murder of Delhi model Jessica Lall on April 30, 1999.

The killing of journalist Shivani Bhatnagar on January 23, 1999 has followed a similar pattern. After disappearing from the public consciousness for over three years, it suddenly roared back on the front pages of newspapers and television screens following the arrest of three involved in her murder-with curious twists in the tale. The Shivani murder investigation involves the police chasing the prime suspect R.K. Sharma who, ironically, is a very senior policeman. To add to the drama, the voluble wife of Sharma went on the rampage on TV to not only defend her husband, but also make wild accusations at a senior cabinet minister without offering any evidence. Sadly, the reputation of politicians has sunk so low that people are willing to believe the worst about them even if they are innocent. Either way, it has catapulted the story from a local murder to a crime thriller of national interest.

In our cover story this week, we attempt to unravel this intriguing web of crime, deceit, denial and misinformation by building profiles of Shivani and Sharma and piecing together the evidence, motives and players. Special Correspondent Sayantan Chakravarty, a longtime crime tracker, reconstructed events and dug up new information. While Special Correspondent Ramesh Vinayak profiled Sharma and his family in Panchkula, Special Correspondent Shefalee Vasudev met Shivani's family, her husband and former associates in Delhi to create a complete sketch of the journalist. "It's a sad story of a small town girl smitten with power and how it got her in the end," concludes Vasudev.

But this is not the end of the tale of passion and murder. It is likely to get even more intriguing and murky with the surrender or capture of the prime suspect.

(Aroon Purie)