Security guard Sajjad Mughal held guilty on June 30 of molesting and murdering Pallavi Purkayastha, a 25-year-old law professional, was sentenced to life imprisonment on Monday by a city sessions court.
Pallavi and her fiancé had rented an apartment in Bhakti Park in June 2012. According to the police, Mughal was aware that Pallavi was alone on the night of August 9, 2012, when he disconnected the power supply to her 16th floor flat. He attempted to rape her and when she resisted, he killed her.
Session court judge Vrushali Joshi while pronouncing the sentence said that the case did not fall under the 'rarest of rare category'.
"Taking into consideration both the aggravating and mitigating circumstances, the court is of the opinion that the case does not fall under the rarest of the rare argument," she said.
Immediately after the verdict was pronounced, the convict pleaded for leniency. The court however said that the minimum sentence (life till the remainder of natural life) was awarded to him.
"The maximum punishment is death and the court has awarded you the minimum punishment permissible under the law," she added.
The parents of the victim were however disappointed by the verdict.
"My daughter was stabbed 16 times by the accused, if this does not qualify as rarest of rare then what is? She was a strong girl and had put up a brave fight. In this country where rapes and murders are so common, the court should have set an example," father Atanu Purkayastha told The Hindu .
The mother of the victim, Sumita Purkayastha, broke down after the judgement. "We are utterly disappointed and dejected by the verdict. A lenient sentence has been awarded to the accused," she said.
The prosecution will decide on the future course of action after studying the verdict.
"The court while awarding the sentence might have considered the age of the accused and the fact that it was a solitary incident," special public prosecutor Ujjawal Nikam said.
