In a first, death penalty for 3 repeat rape offenders; Shakti Mills gang rape convicts to move HC against order
A sessions court on Friday sentenced three men convicted of gang-raping a photojournalist in the Shakti Mills compound in Mahalaxmi last year to death, bringing into force for the first time the new law for repeat rape offenders.
Vijay Jadhav, Kasim Shaikh alias Bangali, and Salim Ansari are the first in the country to be sentenced to death for rape not involving the death of the victim, as part of the changed anti-rape laws following the December 2012 fatal gang rape of a young student in Delhi in a moving bus.
The fourth convict, Siraj Khan, was sentenced to life while a minor accused is being tried by the Juvenile Justice Board.
Jadhav, Shaikh and Ansari raped a telephone operator from Bhandup on July 31, 2013, and the photojournalist on August 22, 2013.
The three will move the Bombay high court against the death penalty.
According to the law, if a person is convicted in two gang rape cases and he is sentenced to life in one case, he might get a death penalty in the other if the cases are not heard simultaneously. In the Bhandup telephone operator's rape, the court sentenced the three to life imprisonment.
Handing out the capital punishment under Section 376 (E) of the IPC, principle judge Shalini Phansalkar Joshi said: "Any leniency in this case would be a travesty of justice. There needs to be zero tolerance for such crimes. The message needs to be loud and clear."
Defence advocate Prakash Salsingekar sought the court's permission to examine the mothers of convict Jadhav and Ansari in order to bring it on record that both of them had a poor financial background, and it was not they but their socio-economic condition that forced them to commit such a crime. The court accepted the plea and the mothers were examined.
When the court asked the defence and the prosecution to argue on the quantum of sentence, the defence advocate sought an adjournment till Monday, saying a senior advocate would appear on their behalf to argue on the sentence.
Special public prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam termed it a "delaying tactic".
The court said: "The grounds on which the defence filed the application is totally frivolous... thus stands rejected."
Nikam said: "If we want to send a strong message... the convicts deserve nothing less than death penalty.
The convicts can move the Bombay high court within two months against the sessions court judgment
The state will have to approach the HC within six months for confirmation of the death penalty
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