The High Court of Kerala has upheld the rigorous life sentence awarded to businessman Mohammed Nisham who had been convicted by the trial court for ramming his high-end SUV into Chandra Bose, a security guard at his apartment complex in Thrissur in 2015, and causing his death.
Simultaneously, the Bench comprising Justices K. Vinod Chandran and C. Jayachandran also dismissed pleas by the prosecution to award him capital punishment, terming it not a rarest of rare case. It also dismissed a plea by a Bengaluru native seeking possession of the SUV.
The Bench said the murder was a blot on the cultural capital of Kerala and one that shook societal conscience. Nisham had attacked the security guard, citing delay in opening the gate of the premium apartment complex. He continued the attack, even as the guard ran into the security cabin. This was followed by ramming the SUV into him and a subsequent assault at the parking area.
Nisham’s contention
Nisham contended that the death was accidental, and occurred after the guard and a few others tried to attack him. The court ruled that defence lawyers were unable to prove this and that testimony by witnesses, medical records, and other scientific evidence disproved this.
The crime was committed in a dastardly manner and it can be said that the accused, a resident of the apartment complex, was in a dominant position vis-a-vis the deceased, an employee of the complex. The claim of the accused having suffered from bipolar disorder was not proved.
