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HC upholds death sentence to Rohtak girl who killed 7 of her family
On the night of September 14, 2009, Sonam mixed some sedative in the dinner (’rotis’) and milk of her family members and strangled them with rope with the help of Navin after they fell unconscious.
Terming them “monsters”, a Punjab and Haryana high court on Tuesday upheld the death sentence of a teenage girl and her boyfriend, who killed seven members of her family at Kabpulpur village in Rohtak in September 2009.
The convicts are Sonam Dagar, now 27, and Navin Dagar, 28, both hailing from the same village.
Sonam and Navin who belonged to the same clan were having an affair. They were studying at Rohtak town and started liking each other. When Sonam’s parents got to know of their affair, they asked her to discontinue studies and restricted her to home.
Apprehending that her family will not accept their relationship, the duo eliminated Sonam’s parents (Surender, 45, and Promila, 40), brother Arvind , 15, grandmother Bhuro Devi, 70, and three cousins Vishal, 10, Sonika, 12, and Monica, 14.
Marriage within the same clan is considered a taboo in the rural Haryana.
On the night of September 14, 2009, Sonam mixed some sedative in the dinner (’rotis’) and milk of her family members and strangled them with rope with the help of Navin after they fell unconscious.
To avoid suspicion on her, Sonam lay down in the bathroom pretending to be in an unconscious state and tried to portray the incident a result of property dispute or loot.
Police had solved the case after tracking the call details of Sonam and Navin. Sonam and Navin were convicted under Section 302 (murder) of the IPC and were awarded death sentence by the Rohtak district and sessions court on March 4, 2014.
“The murders were committed one by one. The conscience of both accused was not shaken even after committing the first murder. Accused Sonam was given birth and brought up by her parents. A woman by its very nature is merciful. From childhood, all necessary facilities were extended to her by her parents,” the division bench of justice AB Chaudhari and justice Kuldip Singh said, while justifying the death sentence.
“After committing murder of Bhuri (grandmother), both of them committed sexual intercourse on the bed where dead body of Bhuri was lying. The grisly act and the manner of commission of crime shows that both accused are monsters,” the division bench added.
The court further observed that the collective conscience of the community is shocked with the present case. “...Death penalty in present case is desirable and is only punishment, which could be awarded. The murders show deplorability. The murders were committed in cold blood,” the bench added.