Rape and murder: HC quashes death penalty
Bengaluru, August 05: Considering the prosecution’s objection that the accused was not given the chance for the cross examination by the sessions court, the Karnataka High Court has quashed the death penalty awarded to an accused in rape and murder of a six-year-old girl.
The Divisional Bench comprising Justice RB Budihal and Justice BA Patil ordered the lower court to retrial the case. During the hearing, state prosecutor HS Chandramouli said that the accused did not get suitable legal aid was not given the chance for cross-examination. So, it was not fair to regularize the death penalty awarded to the accused, he said.
Considering his objection, the Bench said that it was the rarest among rare cases. The work of the prosecution was not just ensuring the punishment to the accused, but it should bring to the notice of the court when the accused was denied fair trial and appreciated the stand of the prosecution.
Local police had registered a case against Anil Balagar of Banashankari Layout Second Stage on charges of raping and murdering a six-year-old girl.
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Police inspector suspended over 'involvement' in honour killing in Andhra's' Palnadu dt
Macherla (Andhra Pradesh) (PTI): A police inspector was suspended on Sunday over his alleged involvement in an alleged honour killing of a woman in a village under Macherla in Palnadu district, a senior police official said.
According to police, the woman, identified as Chowdeshwaramma, was in a relationship with Nagaraj, both belonging to the same community, and had eloped earlier.
"A police inspector was suspended following allegations of involvement in an honour killing case, including suspected monetary transactions with the victim's family," the official told PTI.
Police said the couple had approached the police station after eloping, where the woman's parents assured that they would conduct her marriage with Nagaraj, following which she returned home.
However, after a few days, when the family allegedly did not show interest in conducting the marriage, the woman expressed her intention to go back with the man again, he said.
Subsequently, she was found dead, with the family initially claiming that she died by hanging and filing a complaint accordingly.
The postmortem report later revealed that the woman was murdered by strangulation, contradicting the family's claim, police said.
Allegations later surfaced that the inspector had taken money from the woman's father and was involved in handing her back to the family earlier.
Based on these allegations and failure to take proper action in the case, the inspector was placed under suspension, said the official.
The woman's death is reported to have occurred on March 18, police said.
Meanwhile, police have registered a case under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), and relevant sections may be altered during the course of investigation, he added.
