Nearly four years after Kuttu Bai was burnt at her husband’s pyre in Patna-Tamoli village of Panna district, four people, including her two sons, were sentenced to life for the crime of abetting Sati.
On Wednesday, the special court of Ashok Kumar Mishra (district and sessions judge) delivered the judgment, also slapping a fine of Rs 5,500 on Jay Narayan Pathak, his brother Deep Narayan Pathak and Ashok Sen and Rajkumar Sen, Kuttu’s sons.
On August 6, 2002, Kuttu Bai was devoured by the flames of her husband Mullu Sen’s pyre. According to the police, villagers had abetted Kuttu Bai to become a Sati and even made a donation box to collect funds to build a temple of 'Sati Mata'. When the police intervened, the villagers pelted stones and tried to stop them from performing their duties, special prosecution lawyer, Satish Chand Rawat said. During the hearing, 20 witnesses were heard. Many of the villagers turned hostile, but the policemen remained firm on their statements.