E-Paper
Sentencing in Kotkhai rape case deferred to June 15
The hearing has been deferred for the fifth time since April 28, when the court had held the lone accused, Anil Kumar, alias Nilu, a wood cutter, guilty of rape and murder.
A special court of the Central Bureau of Investigation on Tuesday deferred announcement of the quantum of sentence in the Kotkhai rape and murder case to June 15.
The hearing has been deferred for the fifth time since April 28, when the court had held the lone accused, Anil Kumar, alias Nilu, a wood cutter, guilty of rape and murder.
The verdict had been announced by special judge Rajiv Bharadwaj after hearing both the defence and prosecution through video conference. The accused could not be produced in court because of the coronavirus curfew.
A Class-10 student in Kotkhai town of Shimla district had gone missing on July 4, 2017. On July 6, the victim’s body was found in Tandi forest. Initially, the special investigation team constituted by the state police had arrested six people in the state.
The death of one of the six suspects, Suraj Kumar, in police custody after an alleged severe beating, triggered widespread protests in the state. The case was later transferred to the CBI, who arrested the 25-year-old lumberjack after DNA testing on April 14, 2018, which led to the exoneration of the six people arrested by Himachal Pradesh Police.
