Silvester D'Souza
Daijiworld Media Network - Kundapur
Kundapur, Mar 5: The district additional fast track court in Kundapur on Thursday March 5 sentenced two persons from Kottayam, Kerala for stabbing to death a police jeep driver and attempting to murder a circle inspector four years ago.
Rajesh Nair and Raghu Nambiar were convicted of killing the police jeep drriver in an incident that occured in 2010. While first accused Raghu was awarded life imprisonment till death under section 302 of IPC for killing the police jeep driver, and Rajesh was sentenced to five years in jail and Rs 10,000 fine under IPC section 307 for attempting to kill the circle inspector. Also, both were awarded two years of rigorous imprisonment under IPC section 332 for obstructing the police from doing their duty.
Raghu and Rajesh were held guilty by judge Rajashekar Venkata Gowda Patil on Wednesday March 4, and on Thursday, the quantum of punishment was pronounced.
Case recall
Raghu and Rajesh had left from Kottayam on May 28, 2010 and reached Byndoor the next day. On May 29 night, they looted a petrol bunk in Byndoor, and the next night, on May 30 they purchased a knife from Sridevi stores in Kundapur.
On May 31, they plotted to commit roberies in Kundapur town, and first, they entered a bus parked at a petrol bunk near Parijata circle and robbed mobile phones and cash from two cleaners who were inside. They then tried to break open a shop on Rama Mandir road, and assaulted and robbed a person named Vicky who came there and fled from the spot.
Police jeep driver Sridhar who was killed
File pics of crime spot
The Kundapur police led by the then ASI Subbanna who received information about the robbers began a hunt for them, but in the process, the robbers attacked the police jeep with iron rods and escaped via ring road on to the national highway.
The next morning at around 4.30 am, when the police were keeping vigil, the jeep of the then circle inspector Kantharaj, who was in charge of patrol, came face to face with the robbers. When the police confronted the robbers, the latter snatched Kantharaj's pistol and tried to open fire. Police driver Sridhar who was in the jeep came to Kantharaj's rescue, and was stabbed with a knife by the robbers. The accused managed to escape while Sridhar was rushed to hospital where he was declared brought dead.
The people then joined hands with the police in hunting down the robbers, and found them hiding near a river. Raghu and Rajesh were arrested and produced in court. Their bail plea was rejected considering the gravity of the crime.
Well-known advocate Ravikiran Murdeshwar was the public prosecutor in the case. Locals Girish, Sunil, Rajendra Kanchan and Surendra Kanchan who helped in the arrest of the accused had testified in the court. The court's attention was also drawn to the several criminal cases against the accused registered in Kerala and Karnataka. Based on the testimonies of the witnesses and the evidences, the court pronounced the accused guilty.
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