Coimbatore rape: SC upholds death
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
New Delhi:08.11.2019
Holding that mere young age and presence of aged parents cannot be ground for commutation of sentence, the Supreme Court on Thursday refused to review its verdict to award death sentence to a convict who had raped and murdered a 10-year old girl and her seven-year-old brother in Coimbatore in 2010.
Although a three-judge bench of Justices R F Nariman, Sanjiv Khanna and Surya Kant was unanimous in dismissing the review petition of the condemned prisoner, Justice Khanna differed from his colleague judges on awarding death sentence.
The same apex court bench had in August upheld the conviction of Manoharan in the case but Justice Khanna at that time too differed with other two judges on the quantum of punishment. While Justices Nariman and Kant had awarded death sentence, Justice Khanna held that the convict should be directed to suffer sentence for life till his natural death, without remission/commutation. The convict thereafter sought review of the verdict.
‘Mere young age cannot be ground for commutation’
Dismissing the review petition, the majority verdict said no leniency could be shown to the convict in view of the severity of the offence and sentence could not be commuted merely on the ground of his young age and that he has aged parents.
“The present case is essentially one where two accused misused societal trust to hold as captive two innocent schoolgoing children, one of whom was brutally raped and sodomised, and thereupon administered poison and finally drowned by throwing them into a canal. It was not in the spur of the moment or a crime of passion; but craftily planned, meticulously executed and with multiple opportunities to cease and desist. We are of the view that the present offence(s) of the petitioner are so grave as to shake the conscience of this court and of society and would without doubt amount to rarest of the rare,” the court said.
“Mere young age and presence of aged parents cannot be grounds for commutation. One may view that such young age poses a continuous burden on the state and presents a longer risk to society, hence warranting more serious intervention by courts. Similarly, just because the now deceased co-accused Mohanakrishnan was the mastermind whose offence was comparatively more egregious, we cannot commute the otherwise barbarically shocking offences of the petitioner. We are also not inclined to give leeway of the lack of criminal record, considering that the current crime was not just one offence, but comprised multiple offences over many hours,” it said. Justice Khanna, in his one paragraph judgement, said, “On the question of sentence, I do not see any good ground and reasons to review my observations and findings in the minority judgement.”
According to prosecution, Manoharan along with prime accused Mohanakrishnan, former van driver of the children, abducted the siblings on October 29, 2010 with the aim of demanding ransom from their father, a textile merchant. However, they raped the girl and murdered her and also her brother who was a witness to the crime. They later threw the bodies in a canal near Pollachi. Mohanakrishnan was shot dead by police in an alleged encounter when he tried to escape after his arrest.
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
New Delhi:08.11.2019
Holding that mere young age and presence of aged parents cannot be ground for commutation of sentence, the Supreme Court on Thursday refused to review its verdict to award death sentence to a convict who had raped and murdered a 10-year old girl and her seven-year-old brother in Coimbatore in 2010.
Although a three-judge bench of Justices R F Nariman, Sanjiv Khanna and Surya Kant was unanimous in dismissing the review petition of the condemned prisoner, Justice Khanna differed from his colleague judges on awarding death sentence.
The same apex court bench had in August upheld the conviction of Manoharan in the case but Justice Khanna at that time too differed with other two judges on the quantum of punishment. While Justices Nariman and Kant had awarded death sentence, Justice Khanna held that the convict should be directed to suffer sentence for life till his natural death, without remission/commutation. The convict thereafter sought review of the verdict.
‘Mere young age cannot be ground for commutation’
Dismissing the review petition, the majority verdict said no leniency could be shown to the convict in view of the severity of the offence and sentence could not be commuted merely on the ground of his young age and that he has aged parents.
“The present case is essentially one where two accused misused societal trust to hold as captive two innocent schoolgoing children, one of whom was brutally raped and sodomised, and thereupon administered poison and finally drowned by throwing them into a canal. It was not in the spur of the moment or a crime of passion; but craftily planned, meticulously executed and with multiple opportunities to cease and desist. We are of the view that the present offence(s) of the petitioner are so grave as to shake the conscience of this court and of society and would without doubt amount to rarest of the rare,” the court said.
“Mere young age and presence of aged parents cannot be grounds for commutation. One may view that such young age poses a continuous burden on the state and presents a longer risk to society, hence warranting more serious intervention by courts. Similarly, just because the now deceased co-accused Mohanakrishnan was the mastermind whose offence was comparatively more egregious, we cannot commute the otherwise barbarically shocking offences of the petitioner. We are also not inclined to give leeway of the lack of criminal record, considering that the current crime was not just one offence, but comprised multiple offences over many hours,” it said. Justice Khanna, in his one paragraph judgement, said, “On the question of sentence, I do not see any good ground and reasons to review my observations and findings in the minority judgement.”
According to prosecution, Manoharan along with prime accused Mohanakrishnan, former van driver of the children, abducted the siblings on October 29, 2010 with the aim of demanding ransom from their father, a textile merchant. However, they raped the girl and murdered her and also her brother who was a witness to the crime. They later threw the bodies in a canal near Pollachi. Mohanakrishnan was shot dead by police in an alleged encounter when he tried to escape after his arrest.
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