Crime
Bombay HC commutes death punishment to life for 3 in Shakti Mills gang-rape case
The Bombay High Court on Thursday commuted to rigorous life imprisonment the death sentences awarded to three repeat offenders, who were convicted for the brutal gang-rape of a photo-journalist in the Shakti Mills Compound in 2013.
A division bench of Justice S.S. Jadhav and Justice P.K. Chavan, while upholding the conviction, commuted the trial court’s 2014 order of Principal Judge Shalini Phansalkar-Joshi, giving the death penalty to the accused trio — Qasim Shaikh ‘Bengali’, 21, Salim Ansari, 28 and Vijay Jadhav, 19.
The verdict came in appeals filed by the three convicts, who — along with one Siraj Rehman Khan and an unidentified minor — were tried for the August 22, 2013 gang-rape which shook the nation.
The judges ruled that the Constitutional court cannot award punishment based on public opinion and though it may be contrary to the majority view, the court followed the procedure.
The three convicts — who became the first in the country to be awarded under the amended Indian Penal Code Section 376 (E) providing for life term in jail or death for rape cases or repeat offenders, in the wake of the Delhi Nirbhaya gang-rape case of December 2012 — shall not be entitled to furlough or parole while serving their rigorous imprisonment for life.
The incident took place late that evening when the young woman photo-journalist, along with a male colleague, was on an assignment to the defunct Shakti Mills Compound.
There, they were waylaid for the four young men and a minor boy, sparking a nationwide outrage, and the Mumbai Police managed to arrest all the accused within a week.
Subsequently, another victim, a 19-year old telephone operator also approached the police a month later to complain against the same five youngsters at the same venue on July 31, 2013, three weeks before the second incident.
Both the victim women identified the accused, and the two cases were heard simultaneously and in March 2014, the Sessions Court Principal Judge Phansalkar-Joshi found the four adults guilty in each case, while two minors were tried by the Juvenile Justice Board.
Subsequently, the prosecution sought permission to invoke the IPC Section 376(E) against the convicts which was allowed, the court sentenced the trio of Shaikh, Ansari and Jadhav to death as it was “the rarest of rare cases”, while one was awarded a life sentence.
In the Bombay High Court, the public prosecutor Deepak Salvi, along with Sanil Salvi argued for the highest punishment since it was the ‘rarest of rare cases’ as their acts amounted to devastation of social trust, led to a fear psychosis due to the brutal, barbaric and diabolical nature of the crime, all the accused threatening to kill the victim, committing the violence brutal sexual assault involving anal and oral sex.
The Amicus Curiae, advocate Yug M. Choudhary, assisted by lawyer Payoshi Roy — appointed for the accused — argued against the death sentence saying the accused were not given any opportunity to defend or reform themselves.
He explained how the accused were never exposed to any correctional influence, their socio-economic circumstance, no schooling, were used to a life of abject violence and did not deserve the death penalty especially when the maximum punishment for the offence was 20 years.
Crime
Delhi: Murder case solved within 16 hours, husband arrested for killing wife

New Delhi, Sep 16: Delhi Police on Wednesday have claimed to have solved a murder case within 16 hours with the arrest of a 24-year-old man for allegedly killing his wife following an altercation arising out of strained marital relations and frequent quarrels.
According to police, the case was registered at Anand Parbat police station under Section 103(1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
On September 14, police received information regarding a suspected murder at Punjabi Basti in Baljeet Nagar, Anand Parbat. The police reached the spot, where a 32-year-old woman was found dead inside a room.
During the preliminary inquiry, police learned that the deceased was living in the room with her husband, two minor daughters and her mother.
The deceased’s elder daughter, aged around 10, told police that she woke up at around 3:45-4 a.m. and saw her father near her mother, checking her breathing. She said her father then left the house. After some time, she noticed that her mother was not responding.
On examining the body, police found no apparent external injuries, except nail-like marks on the left side of the neck. The Crime Team and Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) team inspected the crime scene and documented it through photographs.
The woman was shifted to Lady Hardinge Medical College (LHMC) Hospital, where she was declared brought dead. Her body was preserved for postmortem examination.
Police said the circumstances of the incident and the statement of the minor daughter raised suspicion about the involvement of the deceased’s husband. Accordingly, FIR No. 517/2026 was registered on September 15 and an investigation was launched.
The postmortem examination was conducted at the LHMC mortuary, following which the body was handed over to the family members.
Considering the gravity of the offence and the possibility of the accused escaping, the police team launched a search operation.
Through technical investigation, corroboration of available information and local intelligence, the team traced and apprehended the accused, identified as Chandrapal Bhati, a resident of Wair in Bulandshahr, Uttar Pradesh, within 16 hours of the incident.
During interrogation, the accused allegedly disclosed his involvement in the crime. Police said he stated that he and his wife frequently quarrelled and that their marital relationship had remained strained.
The accused allegedly further disclosed that he strangled his wife to death following an altercation arising from their strained marital relations and frequent quarrels.
Police said no previous involvement of the accused has come to notice so far.
Crime
Gurugram hit-and-run case: Car driver, cousin sent to two days’ police custody

Gurugram, Sep 16: A Gurugram court on Wednesday sent Kalyan Bainsla, the driver accused of hitting a woman biker on Golf Course Road, and his cousin to two days’ police custody in connection with the hit-and-run case.
Bainsla and his cousin Lavneesh were produced before Judicial Magistrate First Class (JMIC) Nidhi Beniwal, who sent them to police custody.
Both accused will be produced before the court again on September 18.
The development came a day after Gurugram police arrested Bainsla from Rajasthan’s Dausa and Lavneesh from Haryana’s Palwal in connection with the incident.
Lavneesh was allegedly present in the car along with Bainsla at the time of the incident.
The Gurugram Police had earlier added Section 109 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), pertaining to attempt to murder, to the FIR after the victim, Sia, and her family approached the police seeking stringent action against those involved.
The case was initially registered after the police took suo motu cognisance of a video showing a car hitting a female biker on Golf Course Road.
Following a detailed investigation and analysis of CCTV footage, the police added the attempt-to-murder charge, which carries a punishment of up to 10 years.
The development came after Sia’s family submitted her written statement to Inspector Manoj Kumar, Station House Officer of Gurugram’s Sector-56 police station. The police are also recording her detailed statement as part of the investigation.
The Gurugram police have maintained that lawlessness will not be tolerated and said they are committed to taking strict action against those responsible.
Meanwhile, Sia on Wednesday appealed for strict punishment for all four occupants of the car, saying it was necessary to send the right message to society regarding women’s safety.
Speaking to media, Sia said she had “great expectations” from the court and wanted justice in the case. “I stated in court yesterday that all four, who were in the car, should be arrested and that strict action taken against all of them. In my opinion, they should face harsh consequences; that is the only way to send a message to such young men—so that anyone thinking of committing such an act would think twice,” she said.
Reacting to the accused’s reported claim that he was in a hurry to use the restroom, Sia said the explanation was “despicable”, stating that the entire incident had been recorded on video. She said that had the dashcam on her bike not recorded the incident, she “probably wouldn’t have even been able to justify what happened”. “So many women, who might be heading to work, have to face this kind of harassment. They don’t have cameras, and often, cases like this don’t even get registered,” she said.
Sia reiterated that all four occupants of the car should face action, saying: “All four must be punished; only then can we set an example for our society.”
Crime
Yemen nationals found staying ‘illegally’ in Pune, cases filed against two house owners

Pune, Sep 16: Pune Police have registered separate cases against two house owners for allegedly renting out their flats to Yemeni nationals for the past seven to eight years, without informing the police.
According to police, the tenants’ passports had expired and the Foreigners Regional Registration Office (FRO) had issued restriction orders against them. Their passports have been deposited with the authorities.
The cases were registered at Kondhwa police station under relevant provisions after the house owners allegedly violated police orders by concealing information about the foreign nationals staying at their properties.
Senior Police Inspector Santosh Khetmals of Kondhwa police station told media that deportation proceedings against the Yemeni nationals have been initiated by the FRO.
In the first case, a case was registered against house owner Khan Faheema Jabbar, 55, a resident of Ghorpade Peth, for allegedly renting out her flat to a Yemeni family without informing the police.
In the second case, house owner Jabbar A. Sattar Khan, 62, also a resident of Ghorpade Peth, was booked for allegedly renting out his flat to another Yemeni family without informing the police.
Police said further action in the matter is being taken in coordination with the FRO.
This is however not the first such incident in Pune.
Earlier, on August 13, the special branch of Pune City Police arrested and detained 11 Yemeni nationals and two Afghan nationals from Yevalewadi, Phursungi and Kondhwa for allegedly staying illegally in India.
In 2022, Pune Police had deported a six-member family from Yemen, comprising three adults and three minor children, after they were found to have overstayed in India.
The police had identified the deported Yemeni nationals as Alkharraz Waled Abdurabu Ateq, 37, his wife, Heba Yahya Mohammed Hussen, 33, his brother, Shawqi Abdurabu Ateq, 34, and his three minor children.
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