Image used for representational purpose
NAGPUR/WARDHA (HINGANGHAT): It was justice for Ankita Pisudde at last, two years after her tragic death on February 10, 2020. After hearing arguments from both sides on Thursday on the quantum of punishments, the Hinganghat sessions court in Wardha district Vicky alias Vikesh Nagrale to life imprisonment till his natural death for his barbaric act of setting the 24-year-old college teacher on fire on February 3, 2020.
Ankita suffered 40% burn injuries and died during treatment. While imposing a fine of `5,000 on Nagrale, additional sessions judge Rahul Bhagwat also ordered that he would not be eligible for exemption of two years set off period for the time he was behind bars.
The victim’s parents and relatives, who thronged the court since morning, expressed disappointment over the verdict, as they were hoping for gallows to the 27-year-old accused. “Though we are satisfied by the outcome, we wanted nothing short of death to our daughter’s perpetrator,” mother Sushma said.
The prosecution led by special public prosecutor Ujwal Nikam strongly argued for awarding capital punishment to Nagrale. Nikam cited Supreme Court verdicts of Bachan Singh and Macchi Singh, whose death penalty was confirmed till last.
“We have pointed out that the accused had committed an unscrupulous act of chasing a girl, despite being married and threatening her after she declined his marriage proposal. He set her on fire in the most gruesome manner as a part of his selfish motive. quoted a famous poet who once said that cruelty has no brains and no heart, it only has vested interests,” Nikam told TOI.
He told the court that the aggravating circumstances were more in comparison to mitigating ones and, therefore, the accused deserves no leniency.
“Due to his inhuman act, there was tension in Wardha and Vidarbha region for some time and protests took place all over the state,” said Nikam.
Countering his arguments, defense counsel Bhupendra Sone prayed for leniency stating that the accused was young and had chances of reformation. “He was having a family consisting of parents, wife and a child to look after. He did not have any past criminal antecedents,” he said.
While holding that though Nagarale’s act was gruesome, the court ruled that the mitigating circumstances weigh more in his favour. Rejecting the prosecution’s prayers for gallows to the accused, the judge made it clear that the case did not fall under the definition of “rarest of rare” as per the apex court’s guidelines.
Earlier, public prosecutor Deepak Vaidya, who assisted Nikam, said the eye-witnesses’ testimony and evidence recovered from Nagrale played a key role in his conviction. “Out of 29 witnesses, none turned hostile. The seizure of evidence like the bottle used to pour kerosene on the victim and clothes worn at the time of incident were important.”
Vaidya added that CDR record of Nagrale’s mobile proved that he threatened Ankita with dire consequences after she refused his advances. “The court had taken testimony from a cellular operator from Pune during one of its 64 hearings where he informed that the accused had called the victim for 40 seconds from a particular location. The life term awarded to him till his death is an equally big punishment in the eyes of law,” he said.
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