MUMBAI: A 23-year-old man, convicted for attacking a traffic police constable with a wooden plank in suburban Bandra and causing his death in 2016, was sentenced to life imprisonment by a court here on Saturday.
His brother, who was also allegedly involved in the assault but was a minor at the time, is being tried separately. Additional Sessions Judge KM Jaiswal held Ahmed Qureshi guilty under section 302 (murder) of the Indian Penal Code on Friday.
The sentence was pronounced on Saturday. While the prosecution demanded the death penalty, the defence prayed for leniency saying that Qureshi had no criminal antecedents and his mother is a widow. The judge noted that only in the "rarest of rare" cases death penalty is awarded.
"Considering his (Qureshi's) young age, the nature of weapon used and other circumstances, in my considered opinion this case does not fall in the rarest of rare category," the judge said. On the other hand, the court also opined that if undue leniency was shown in cases of attacks on police personnel, it will send the wrong message to society.
Family members of the deceased policeman too were victims as they suffered a great loss, so they should be paid a compensation, the court added. After the sentencing, Qureshi urged the court not to shift him from the Arthur Road jail here where he is lodged as he is pursuing graduation from an open university. The judge asked him to approach the appropriate authority.
While convicting him, the court recounted the crime, narrating how the accused hit constable Vilas Shinde with a wooden plank from behind, kicked him in the stomach and fled, and observed that Qureshi's conduct showed his intent.
In August 2016, Shinde (52), on patrolling duty in Bandra, saw Qureshi riding a two-wheeler without helmet and stopped him. According to the prosecution, when Shinde asked him for license and vehicle documents, Qureshi hit Shinde with a wooden plank several times, kicked him in the stomach and fled from the spot.
Qureshi's brother, then 16 years old, was also allegedly involved in the assault. Shinde was rushed to a nearby hospital where he died a few days later.
Qureshi's brother is being tried separately under the provision of the Juvenile Justice Act which allows juvenile delinquents to be tried as adults in cases of rape and murder with a caveat that they would be spared the death penalty or life imprisonment if convicted.