New Delhi: A Delhi court has sentenced two men to life imprisonment for a murder in 2015, calling the crime “heinous” and acknowledging the emotional trauma suffered by the victim’s family.In an order dated May 13, additional sessions judge Virender Kumar Kharta stated that showing undue leniency in sentencing would undermine public confidence in the justice system. Citing a 2005 Supreme Court judgment, the court noted, “Undue sympathy to impose an inadequate sentence would do more harm to the justice system and erode public confidence in the efficacy of law. It is, therefore, the duty of every court to award a proper sentence.“The court was hearing the sentencing arguments in the case of Gurcharan Singh and Sheesh Ram, who had earlier been convicted under Section 302 (murder) of IPC.“The family members of deceased, Manish, have suffered mental trauma, inconvenience, hardship, disappointment and frustration. Adequate compensation must be provided to them,” the judge said, directing the matter to Delhi State Legal Services Authority (DLSA) to determine and award suitable compensation to the victim’s legal heirs.Additional public prosecutor Pankaj Kumar Ranga argued for the death penalty, asserting that the two convicts, acting with common intent, had committed a brutal and deliberate murder.However, the court, while acknowledging the gravity of the crime and noting that aggravating factors outweighed mitigating ones, observed that the case did not meet the criteria for the “rarest of the rare” category required for capital punishment. It also took into account that both convicts were first-time offenders.“In sentencing, a balance must be maintained between the rights of the convict, the rights of the victim and the purpose of the law. Poverty alone is not a significant mitigating factor,” the court said.
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