The Bombay High Court on Wednesday upheld conviction but reduced the death penalty to life sentence for Ankur Panwar convicted for throwing acid on Preethi Rathi.
A Division Bench of Justices B.P. Dharmadhikari and P.D. Naik said, “We do not find that the present case can be termed rarest of the rare and hence Panwar does not deserve death penalty. Hence the death penalty is required to be set aside while confirming the conviction.”
The accused used to live in Rathi’s neighbourhood in Narela, Delhi. Rathi had secured a nursing job at INHS Asvini Hospital. On May 2, 2013, she had just reached Mumbai from New Delhi when Panwar threw sulphuric acid at her. She was rushed to the hospital, but she succumbed to her burns a month later.
The HC was hearing an appeal filed by Panwar challenging the order of conviction, his sentence, and the confirmation of death penalty. The Bench relied on a Supreme Court judgement, and said, “Considering the mitigating circumstances while awarding death penalty, which include whether the offence was committed under the influence of extreme mental or emotional disturbance and the age of the accused, he shall not be sentenced to death. The probability that the accused would not commit criminal acts of violence and the probability that the accused can be reformed and rehabilitated should be considered.”
In the 69-page judgement, the Bench said, “The trial court has not applied its mind to the aforesaid factors. The accused was 23 years old, and he does not have a criminal record. The mitigating circumstances were not considered in proper perspective by the trial court. We do not find that the present case can be termed rarest of the rare, and hence Panwar does not deserve death penalty.”
The court, however, upheld Panwar’s conviction under Section 302 (punishment for murder) and 326 B (voluntarily causing grievous hurt by use of acid) of the Indian Penal Code.
The trial went on for about one-and-a-half years during which the prosecution examined 37 witnesses, including five eyewitnesses and 11 doctors. The special court convicted him for having thrown acid on Rathi and her family members as she refused his proposal to marry him.
While awarding death penalty, special judge Anju Shende had said, “The aggravating circumstances making the case exceptionally cruel are: Preeti was a defenceless young girl, there was no provocation or intimidation on the part of Preeti, and the accused decided to eliminate Preeti in the most ghastly manner. Hence he is a menace to society. It was a planned murder as he wanted Preeti for him and she refused to respond in his way.”
