Mohali: Life term for 2 sisters, their aide for killing moneylender
The victim, Maya Devi, a resident of Gobind Colony, Kharar, was found dead in an open sewage line near Kainor village on the Morinda-Ropar road on June 11, 2021
A woman, her son and her sister will spend life in prison for murdering a 64-year-old Kharar woman to whom she owed ₹2 lakh.
Awarding the sentence, the court of additional sessions judge Baljinder Singh Sra also imposed a fine of ₹14,000 each on the convicts, Krishna Devi, her son Gurdas Singh and sister Raj Dulari. The mother-son duo are residents of Kharar, while Raj Dulari lives in Ropar.
The court, however, acquitted co-accused Dinesh Singh of Uttarakhand.
The victim, Maya Devi, a resident of Gobind Colony, Kharar, was found dead in an open sewage line near Kainor village on the Morinda-Ropar road on June 11, 2021.
After she had not returned home the previous day, her son Vikas Tomar, who runs a money transfer shop, had lodged a missing person report at the Kharar city police station.
Tomar had told the police that his friend Akash Gupta had dropped off his mother at the house of Krishna Devi, who lived in the nearby Ranjit Nagar and thereafter, she never returned home.
Victim loaned money on interest
Tomar said his mother used to lend money on interest and Krishna Devi owed her ₹2 lakh, which she had refused to return. Thus, he suspected her involvement in his mother’s murder.
Tomar later found a CCTV footage from near Krishna Devi’s house, showing his mother being taken away by her, her sister Raj Dulari and one unknown person in a Hyundai Santro (CH-03F-4320).
After his mother’s body was discovered on June 11, 2021, he claimed that her gold ornaments were missing.
Police had subsequently arrested Krishna Devi, her son Gurdas Singh, sister Raj Dulari and one Dinesh Singh for Maya Devi’s murder.
On March 25, 2022, the court framed charges under Sections 302, 379-B, 411, 120-B of the Indian Penal Code against the accused.
In their disclosure to the police, Krishna Devi had disclosed that she, along with her sister, had removed Maya’s gold bangles and gold rings. Krishna Devi’s son Gurdas Singh confessed to have administered celphos tablets to Maya.
However, as per report of the chemical examiner, no poison was detected in the victim’s viscera sample.
The court observed that irrespective of the opinion of the medical board in its inability to give the definite cause of death, it was inferable that death resulted on account of cumulative effect of injuries suffered by the deceased.
“It is further noteworthy that after killing Maya Devi, her body was disposed of in a gutter. It was recovered on June 11, 2021. It thus leads to inference that the deceased was last seen alive with the above named accused and shortly thereafter, she was found dead. Death of Maya Devi is a result of cumulative effect of the injuries suffered by her,” the court held.
The defence counsels contended that it was a blind murder case and the accused had nothing to do with it.
Advocate Madan Dasila, counsel for co-accused Dinesh, urged the court that there was no incriminating piece of evidence against him except that a prosecution witness Akash Gupta had seen him outside the house of Krishna Devi on the day when the victim went missing, which was insufficient to bring home the charged offence against him.
Acquitting Dinesh, the court stated that the mere fact that he was found roaming outside the house of Krishna Devi did not show his complicity either in the conspiracy or murder of deceased Maya.
“The prosecution failed to prove its case against accused Dinesh. As such, he is acquitted of the charges framed against him, whereas, prosecution has been able to prove its case beyond all reasonable doubt against accused Krishna Devi, Raj Dulari and Gurdas Singh,” the court observed.