NCP worker’s murder: Court sentences 3 brothers in Mumbai to 7 years in jail

The incident took place in Oct 2012, when the assailants attacked the 25-year-old with sharp weapons, iron rods and bamboo sticks.

Three brothers on trial for the alleged murder of a Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) ward president in 2012 were sentenced to seven years of imprisonment on Friday, after the sessions judge said their actions amounted to culpable homicide and not murder. Two of their accomplices were convicted only on charges of rioting.

About the case

The charges in the case were not framed against the accused for over two and a half years.

In June 2013, Pappu Dokhare was released on bail by the High Court. Subsequently in the same month, Ismail Sayyed was also released on bail by the sessions court.

The High Court had made the matter time bound and had ordered to complete trial by October 2015.

In July 2015, following the application of Kunchikurve brothers, they were shifted to Thane central prisons from Taloja jail where they were previously lodged. The trio alleged that the hardcore criminals at Taloja jail were beating them up.

By January 2018, 12 witnesses were examined by the prosecution.

In March 2018, the court had also issued a non-bailable warrant against inspector Bhagwat Garande, who was then attached to MHB police station. Garande had sent a letter to the court showing displeasure that the prosecution has not examined some witnesses, the court order shows.

The NCP party worker Shivkant Yadav was attacked by the brothers Subhash Kunchikurve, Maru Kunchikurve and Gangaram Kunchikurve — convicted for culpable homicide not amounting to murder — and Ismail Sayyed and Pappu Dokhare (who have been convicted for rioting). Another accused remains absconding.

Yadav, aged 25 at time, also had a slew of criminal cases registered against him.

As per the prosecution’s case, the incident took place on October 5, 2012 at Ganpat Patil Nagar when the assailants attacked him with sharp weapons, iron rods and bamboo sticks. Yadav succumbed to his injuries at Apex Hospital on October 19 of the same year.

The police investigation showed that Yadav and the convicts had locked horns over the issue of auto-rickshaw parking in the area.

Among the convicts, Maru has 57 criminal cases registered against him ranging from assault to gambling. He is convicted in only one case where he assaulted his brother-in-law who was allegedly harassing Maru’s sister for dowry. The other cases are still pending against him. His brother Subhash also has as many as nine cases and 30 non-cognisable matters against him.

Advocate Kaushik Mhatre appearing for three convicts argued, “The supposed murder weapon was changed by the prosecution at the later stage. Earlier the prosecution claimed sharp weapons were used to attack Yadav but later supplementary statement of complainant stated iron rods were used to attack.”

Advocate Arun Jadhav appearing for two of the Kunchikurve brothers argued in the court that the case does not fall in the ambit of murder.

“The injury on the victim suggests there was no intention to commit murder. Had there been an intention, death would have resulted on the spot of incident considering the number of assailants armed with deadly weapons and the sufficient time in hand as alleged by the prosecution,” Jadhav argued.

Additional sessions judge DK Bhende on Thursday accepted the pleas of defense counsels and converted the case to culpable homicide.