KOCHI: Terming it as cold blooded murder, the Kerala High Court on Wednesday confirmed the death sentence awarded by Palakkad Sessions Court to Rejikumar, the accused in the murder of his wife and four children in 2008. Rejikumar, of Karoor, Pala, was also charged with raping his 12-year-old daughter before murdering her.
A Division Bench comprising Justice T R Ramachandran Nair and Justice A V Ramakrishna Pillai passed the order while dismissing the appeal filed by Rejikumar.
The court observed that the case would reveal that Rejikumar planned the murder of his wife and four children and executed it in succession, during a period of two weeks, which would indicate that it was a pre-calculated cold blooded murder. It was crucial to note that after committing murder of his wife, the accused had sex with the woman with whom he had an illicit affair during the same night. “The conduct of the accused would shock the conscience of society,” the court observed.
Reji Kumar murdered his wife Lissy on July 8, 2008. His children- Amany,3, and Amal,10, were murdered on July 13 and Amalu, 12, and Amalya,9, were murdered on July 23. The accused had committed rape on Amalu on July 23 midnight. After murdering Lissy, Amal and Amanya, Reji Kumar had went to Pala where the other two children were staying in a boarding school and brought them home.
The body of Lissy was concealed in a septic tank on the premises of their house. The bodies of the children were in a decomposed stage. The body of two children were dumped in a property near their rented houses and the other bodies were found in the bedroom of the house. Rejikumar hailing from Pala was engaged in agricultural works at Amayur, Pattambi and was staying in a rented house with his family.
Additional Director General of Prosecution Tom Jose Padinjarekkara submitted that the murder committed by the appellant was brutal and cruel. Apart from committing murder he also raped his own daughter. If the appellant was allowed to live, it will sent a wrong message to society.
Reji Kumar holds a BSc chemistry degree and post-graduate diploma in computer applications and he was an advocate clerk. Instead of protecting his family, he killed them in a pre-planned manner and he was having no repentance.
The court observed that the prosecution succeeded in establishing that the accused had caused the death of his wife and children. The investigating agency, by not leaving any stone unturned during the course of investigation, had done a commendable job. The motive alleged by the prosecution was that Rejikumar had developed illicit relationship with the woman who was his co-worker. For that he wanted to annihilate the whole family.
The court observed that the evidence would indicate that the intension of Rejikumar was to live with the woman. “This is a strong indication which compels us to hold that the alternative option of rehabilitation is unquestionably foreclosed,” it said. The sentence imposed by the trial court on the accused did not call for an interference, the court said.