NEW DELHI: A court here on Friday reserved for November 25 its order on the quantum of punishment for those convicted for killing TV journalist Soumya Vishwanathan in 2008.
Vishwanathan, who was working with a leading English news channel, was shot dead in the early hours of September 30, 2008, on south Delhi's Nelson Mandela Marg while she was returning home from work. Police claimed the motive was robbery.
"The additional report regarding verification of the affidavits of all the convicts has been received from the Secretary, Delhi State Legal Services Authority (DLSA), South, Saket Courts.
A copy of the same is supplied to the public prosecutor for the state as well as to the respective counsel for the convicts," Additional Sessions Judge (ASJ) Ravindra Kumar Pandey said.
He noted that arguments on the sentencing by the prosecutor and the counsels for the convicts were complete. "Be put up for order on sentence on November 25," the court said.
On November 7, the court adjourned the matter after noting that the verification of the affidavits filed by the convicts was not complete.
Earlier, on October 18, it had convicted Ravi Kapoor, Amit Shukla, Baljeet Malik, and Ajay Kumar under Indian Penal Code (IPC) section 302 (murder) and Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) provisions for committing organised crime resulting in the death of a person.
The fifth accused in the case, Ajay Sethi, was convicted under IPC section 411 (dishonestly receiving stolen property) and MCOCA provisions for conspiring to abetting, aiding in, or knowingly facilitating organised crime and receiving proceeds of organised crime.
According to the prosecution, Kapoor shot Vishwanathan with a country-made pistol on September 30, 2008, on Nelson Mandela Marg in South Delhi while chasing the victim's car to rob her.
Shukla, Kumar and Malik were also with Kapoor. Police recovered the car used in the murder from Sethi alias Chacha, it said.