Srinagar, Mar 15: Principal Sessions Judge on Thursday sentenced two accused including a woman to life imprisonment in a case of rape and brutal murder of a college girl.
 In 2005 the girl was raped at desolated place and then murdered. All her belongings were taken out and her body was thrown into river to pass it off a case of drowning. 
 Principal Sessions Judge Kaneez Fatima indicted Bashir Ahmad Sheikh of Naseem Bagh Hawal and Sameena alias Sami of Kaw Mohalla Khanyar in the offence.
 The convicts had assisted the prime accused Zahoor Ahmad Wani of Dargah Hazratbal to rape and murder a college student (name withheld). The prime accused Wani had committed suicide later.
 The slain college girl was an orphan and was adopted by her maternal aunt after her parents had died.
 The convict Sameena, who was living in the neighborhood of the slain girl, had befriended her.
 Prosecution case was that on April 25, 2005, around 6 pm, Sameena came to the house of the victim and took her along to the market with the permission of her maternal aunt. Subsequently when she didn’t return in the evening the maternal aunt went to Sameena’s house and asked about the girl. Sameena informed her that she has left her at their gate.
 After looking for her for three days, the family lodged an FIR in Police station Khanyar.
 During investigation Khanyar police received information from Sumbal Police Station that they have recovered a woman’s body from river Jhelum and it was buried in the local graveyard with the help of local Auqaf. The body was later exhumed and identified that of the college girl.
 The body was brought to Khanyar after postmortem and buried at Mulkha graveyard.
 Subsequently, a fresh FIR was lodged and investigation were taken up. Police came to know that the victim had a cell phone given to her by her fiancé.  Police examined the call details of the SIM card. Police arrested Ishtiyaq Kenu of Khanyar, a chemist and he revealed to the police that he was given the cell by Sameena.
 Police arrested Sameena. She revealed how the victim was abducted, raped and killed.
 The Sessions Judge while awarding the sentence held that keeping in view the mitigating as well as the aggravating circumstances, the convict, Bashir Ahmad Sheikh  is sentenced to life imprisonment, which shall extend to full life of the convict for commission of offence under section 302 of RPC.
 The Court ruled that for the offence committed under section 364, Sheikh is sentenced to  imprisonment for 10 years and shall be liable to a fine of Rs 5,000 and in  case of default, he will undergo one year rigorous imprisonment.
 “For the Commission of offence under section 376 of RPC, Sheikh is punished with rigorous imprisonment of 10 years and a fine of Rs 5000. And in default, he shall undergo rigorous imprisonment of one year” the court held.
 The court held that for the commission of offence under section 201 of RPC, Sheikh is sentenced to a rigorous imprisonment of seven years and a fine of Rs 1000 is also imposed upon him and in default the convict shall undergo rigorous imprisonment for a period of two months.
 The court held that, for Commission of offence under section 302, Sameena is sentenced to life imprisonment, which may extend to full life of the convict.
 The Court sentenced Sameena to ten years rigorous imprisonment for the commission of offence under section 364 of RPC and imposed a fine of Rs 5000, upon her.
 “For the commission of offence under section 376 of RPC Sameena is sentenced to rigorous imprisonment of 10 years and a fine of Rs 5000 is also imposed upon her.
 The Govt was represented by pubic prosecutor, A.A.Telli in the case.

Lastupdate on : Thu, 15 Mar 2012 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Thu, 15 Mar 2012 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Fri, 16 Mar 2012 00:00:00 IST