A 23-year-old youth was given the death penalty by a sessions court in Pune on Wednesday for the brutal murder of a 65-year-old woman and the rape of her 27-year-old grand daughter-in-law in September 2007.
Additional sessions judge US Thakare described the crime as among the ‘rarest of rare’. He said the youth Sandesh alias Sainath Kailas Abhang “is not suitable to live in the society and should be hanged by the neck till he is dead”.
Abhang was found guilty of murdering a 65-year-old woman by stabbing her and then raping and assaulting her grand daughter-in-law, who was five months’ pregnant.
Before pronouncing the death sentence, the judge asked Abhang if he wanted to make any submission about his conviction. In reply, Abhang said, “My father is an alcoholic and I was brought up by my mother in considerable hardship. I wish I am given an opportunity to reform myself to become an ideal citizen. I want to fulfill my mother’s dreams”
But the judge said that the convict clearly did not understand the meaning of the word ‘mother’, before pronouncing the verdict.
The husband of the victim who was raped, said, “I welcome the judgment and thank the judiciary and the police who helped convict Abhang. Now that he will be hanged, we are fearless that he will not harm us.”
