'Rarest Of The Rare': 5 Convicts Sentenced To Death In 2021 Chhattisgarh Gangrape-Triple Murder Case, Another Handed Lifer

Korba Court, in a historic verdict on Monday evening, sentenced the five convicts to death, considering the case as the rarest of the rare.

Korba:Five convicts of the 2021 Chhattisgarh gangrape and triple murder case were sentenced to death while a sixth one was handed life imprisonment by a court in the state's Korba district on Monday.

The convicts had gang-raped and murdered a 16-year-old girl belonging to Pahadi Korwa tribal community in 2021. They had also murdered the minor girl's father and her younger sister.

The fast-track court, in a historic verdict delivered on Monday evening, sentenced the five to death, considering the case as the rarest of the rare.

While delivering her verdict, Judge Mamta Bhojwani said, "This is an inhuman and ruthless act...Innocent and weak people have been killed to satisfy lust. Due to which the collective consciousness of the entire society has been shocked...This court has no other option left except choosing the exception of death penalty rather than the general rule of life imprisonment."

The convicts sentenced to death include Santram Manjhwar (45 years old at the time of the crime), Anil Kumar Sarthi (20), Pardeshi Das (35), Anand Das (26) and Abdul Jabbar alias Vicky Memon (29), all residents of the Lemru area in Korba. The court also sentenced convict Umashankar Yadav (22) to life imprisonment.

Victim suffered for 4 days

Special Public Prosecutor Sunil Kumar Mishra said that the victim-family used to graze cattle at the house of Santram living in Satrenga village in Lemru area. Giving details of the case, he said that Santram had promised to give Rs 8,000 a month and 10 kg rice to the family.

However, he gave only 600 rupees and 10 kg rice in return for grazing the animals, following which, the Korwa family left his house on January 29, the Advocate said. The family members were standing at Satrenga bus stand when Santram reached there and said that he would drop them home with his companions on a bike.

The Korwa family had a 16-year-old girl and another 4-year-old girl. The accused Santram made the father and both the daughters sit on his motorcycle and rode away. After covering some distance, Santram dropped all three in the forest of Garh Uparoda.

Here, along with his five other companions, Santram smashed all the victims with stones and sticks and dumped them in the forest before fleeing from the spot.

The deceased man's son lodged their missing report at Lemru police station on February 2 after which police swung into action and rounded up six accused following their interrogation on the same day.

Based on the statement of the accused, police reached the crime spot, where they found the injured rape victim alive and two others dead. She was immediately rushed to a local hospital, but succumbed to her injuries before reaching there.

The culprits were booked under sections IPC sections 302 (murder), 376 (2)G (gangrape) and provisions of the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. The case was heard by the fast-track court in Korba which delivered the verdict on Monday.

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