A Singapore court on Wednesday sentenced a 22-year-old Indian student to 35 months of imprisonment over causing death of a fellow Indian.
The guilty Legha Pawan was intoxicated when he pushed Jasbir Singh into the river. Singh, a 33-year-old construction worker was married with two young children in India, and had been the sole breadwinner for his family.
Pawan pleaded guilty to voluntarily causing grievous hurt to Jasbir Singh on the night of June 30, 2024, said a PTI report.
The charge had been reduced from an earlier one of causing death by a rash act. The second charge was taken into consideration, said a Channel News Asia report.
The court noted that Pawan and Singh were intoxicated on the night, when Singh was pushed into the river at Clarke Quay, which is a reknowned tourism-leisure point.
What happened on the night of June 30, 2024?
According to a SCMP report, on the evening of June 30, 2024, Pawan and his housemates carried beer cans, cigarettes and snacks as they headed to Clarke Quay for an evening out.
The next few hours passed by chatting and drinking with Pawan reportedly consuming two cans of beer.
The group was joined by other acquaintances and sometime before 10pm, an argument broke out among the group, which de-escalated and the group dispersed shortly.
{{/usCountry}}The group was joined by other acquaintances and sometime before 10pm, an argument broke out among the group, which de-escalated and the group dispersed shortly.
{{/usCountry}}Singh, who was not a part of the argument was walking along the riverbank around 10.10pm, when Pawan came back and approached him.
Initially, he spoke quietly to Singh, said the report.
The latter stood near the edge of the riverbank, with his back to the river. Pawan knew that Singh was very intoxicated, the court heard.
Suddenly, for no apparent reason, Pawan pushed Singh on his chest with both hands, said the report, after which Singh fell backwards, rolled down the steps and fell into the Singapore River.
A nearby couple raised an alarm, following which police conducted a thorough search. Rescue divers located his body a few hours later.
Pawan attempted to avoid being arrested and fled the spot. Police nabbed him the next morning, said the report.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Jheong Siew Yin noted that Pawan knew that the victim was intoxicated and it was “reasonably foreseeable” that the push would cause grievous hurt.
Also Read | Indian student's US visa refused over non-disclosure of Reddit account
She also pointed out that he fled the scene without helping the victim.
The defence lawyer reportedly highlighted that there was no weapon used, and that the push was “a generic push”, not intended to target vulnerable points.
For voluntarily causing hurt that resulted in grievous hurt, Legha could have been jailed for up to five years, fined up to SGD 10,000, or both, the report added.