LETTER: A special court under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act on Monday sentenced a man to death for rape and murder of an 11-year-old girl and her mother in April 2018, a case that had triggered a nation-wide outrage. His accomplice was awarded life imprisonment by the court. The girl’s body was found with 86 injury marks on April 6, 2018 and three days later decomposed body of her 35-year-old mother was recovered within the limits of the Pandesara police station.
Special judge AH Dhamani awarded the death penalty to Harshay Gurjar (31) while his cousin Hariom Gurjar (28) was sentenced to life imprisonment. The court that had convicted the duo on Friday last week ordered Rs 7.5 lakh compensation to the kin of two victims.
“The court convicted Harsahay for sexual assault and murder of the minor and her mother. While Hariom was convicted for his alleged involvement in the murder and kidnapping,” said P N Parmar, special public prosecutor in the case.
In its judgement, the court mentioned ‘dried tears’ that were found on the face of the deceased minor saying “It shows that she (the minor) died a painful death”. The court further observed that there should not be lesser than death penalty for Harsahay “considering the rise in cases of sexual assault and murder on minors”.
A team of crime branch led by DCP Bipin Ahire; ACP R R Sarvaiya and PI B N Dave, had carried out the investigation in the case. “Police completed the probe in four years and ensured capital punishment for the accused. Total 43 witnesses and 120 documentary evidence were submitted as part of the chargesheet,” said Surat police commissioner Ajay Tomar.
According to case details, the bodies of the minor girl and a 35-year-old woman were found from the limits of Pandesara police station in April 2018. Later during investigation and confession by the accused it was revealed that they were mother and daughter. Their DNA profiling further established their relationship.
The postmortem of the minor girl showed 86 injury marks on her body. When her body was recovered on April 6, dried tears were found on the girl’s face, a testimony of the torture that girl had gone through. The investigation also revealed that the girl was brutalized for over a week before her murder.
With the brutal murder of the 11-year-old triggering national outrage, a team of Ahmedabad crime branch too joined the probe. The Ahmedabad crime branch team cracked and nabbed Harsahay and Hariom from Rajasthan. The accused duo had escaped to their native in Rajasthan after murdering the mother and daughter.
Special judge AH Dhamani awarded the death penalty to Harshay Gurjar (31) while his cousin Hariom Gurjar (28) was sentenced to life imprisonment. The court that had convicted the duo on Friday last week ordered Rs 7.5 lakh compensation to the kin of two victims.
“The court convicted Harsahay for sexual assault and murder of the minor and her mother. While Hariom was convicted for his alleged involvement in the murder and kidnapping,” said P N Parmar, special public prosecutor in the case.
In its judgement, the court mentioned ‘dried tears’ that were found on the face of the deceased minor saying “It shows that she (the minor) died a painful death”. The court further observed that there should not be lesser than death penalty for Harsahay “considering the rise in cases of sexual assault and murder on minors”.
A team of crime branch led by DCP Bipin Ahire; ACP R R Sarvaiya and PI B N Dave, had carried out the investigation in the case. “Police completed the probe in four years and ensured capital punishment for the accused. Total 43 witnesses and 120 documentary evidence were submitted as part of the chargesheet,” said Surat police commissioner Ajay Tomar.
According to case details, the bodies of the minor girl and a 35-year-old woman were found from the limits of Pandesara police station in April 2018. Later during investigation and confession by the accused it was revealed that they were mother and daughter. Their DNA profiling further established their relationship.
The postmortem of the minor girl showed 86 injury marks on her body. When her body was recovered on April 6, dried tears were found on the girl’s face, a testimony of the torture that girl had gone through. The investigation also revealed that the girl was brutalized for over a week before her murder.
With the brutal murder of the 11-year-old triggering national outrage, a team of Ahmedabad crime branch too joined the probe. The Ahmedabad crime branch team cracked and nabbed Harsahay and Hariom from Rajasthan. The accused duo had escaped to their native in Rajasthan after murdering the mother and daughter.