Allahabad HC commutes death penalty of father, son in 19-year-old double murder case

Allahabad HC reduces death sentence to life imprisonment for father-son duo, ruling that the case did not qualify as a 'rarest of rare'.

The Allahabad high court commuted the death sentence of a father-son duo, convicted in a 2005 double murder case, to life imprisonment.

Allahabad High Court (File)

A Bench of Justice Attau Rahman Masoodi and Justice Ajai Kumar Srivastava upheld their murder conviction but ruled that the case did not qualify as a 'rarest of rare' to warrant the death penalty. The court noted that the case was based on circumstantial evidence and that the convicts had no prior criminal history, Bar and Bench reported.

The court's September 27 judgment replaced the death sentence with life imprisonment. "The case does not fall within the ‘rarest of rare’ category. First, it is based on circumstantial evidence, and second, the appellants have no prior criminal record.”

What is the case?

The case dates back to 2005 when the deceased, Krishna Kumar Gupta, entered into an agreement with a builder to construct shops and an office in Hazratganj. Vijay Sharma, who owned a nearby security agency, frequently threatened Gupta, claiming the land belonged to Kuber Finance, which owed him money. Sharma demanded three shops in return for settling the debt.

On April 16, 2005, during a heated argument, Vijay Sharma’s son, Dheeraj, handed him a gun. Shots were fired, killing Gupta on the spot. Gupta's son Kapil later died from his injuries.

The trial court had sentenced the duo to death for the murders.

Setting aside the trial court order, Allahabad HC said, “The mere fact that a death sentence can be awarded does not mean that it has to be awarded. Particularly, when the alternative sentence of life imprisonment is an adequate punishment.”