The High Court, while delivering the verdict, said the incident is not rarest of rare cases
Nagpur: The Nagpur Bench of Bombay High Court on Wednesday commuted death sentence awarded to accused Santosh Ramdas Kalve (28) for abducting and killing 11-year old boy Sahil alias Yash Nitin Borkar of Nagpur for Rs 2 lakh ransom to life imprisonment.
Today’s Rate
Monday 04 Nov. 2024
The verdict was delivered by the bench comprising Justice Sunil Shukre and Justice Govind Sanap on Wednesday.
The High Court, while delivering the verdict, said, “The accused was only 19-year old when he committed the offence. This was his first crime. He had no criminal record in the past. He was a brilliant student and was studying in prison also. There is a chance of improvement in him if given a chance. The Sessions Court did not consider these aspects while awarding the death sentence to the accused. Moreover, the death sentence is given in rarest of rare cases only. This case doesn’t meet the parameters of rarest of rare cases,” the bench noted.
The accused hails from Dapoli (Kalwe), Malegaon Tehsil of Washim district. He was staying in a rented house in Khapri near Nagpur and working as a labourer. But he told people he was a policeman. The Borkar family also stays in Khapri. The accused knew the Borkar family and the victim Yash well. He took advantage of this and planned the macabre crime.
On June 10, 2013, Yash was playing with his friends near his house. Meanwhile, the accused came on a motorcycle there and asked Yash to come with him to get chips and cold drinks. As the boy knew the accused Santosh well, he unhesitatingly went with him. Later, the accused Santosh Kalve took Yash beneath MIHAN Flyover and killed him by hitting it with a concrete stone 22 times.
The police said that the accused did so to get Rs 2 lakh from Yash’s parents as ransom. In the District and Sessions Court on May 5, 2018, the accused Santosh Kalve was sentenced to death in this much-publicised murder case. The case was submitted to the High Court to confirm this sentence. The accused filed an appeal against this sentence. The High Court on Wednesday quashed the death sentence of the accused and sentenced him to life imprisonment.
According to reports, Santosh Kalve’s mother was ill. He needed money for his mother’s treatment and his education. That is why he planned to kidnap Yash Borkar. Yash was a student of Class V. His father saw him while he was playing with his friends. But Yash did not return home even after evening. Yash’s father got a call at 10 pm. The caller threatened to kill the boy if he did not pay Rs 2 lakh. Many had seen Yash with Santosh. So the police thoroughly interrogated Santosh. Finally he confessed to the crime.
