Delhi court awards death penalty to three convicts in gangrape-murder of woman, killing her two children

By Dhiraj Beniwal
New Delhi [India], September 5 : A Delhi Court has recently awarded death sentence to three men for gang-raping and murder of a woman along with her two minor children, a boy (7) and a girl (6).
The convicts first killed the woman with a screwdriver and then strangulated her. Thereafter they killed her two children and then robbed the house. This matter pertains to the area of Khyala police station. 
An FIR was registered in 2015. The complaint was filed by the husband of the deceased. Four persons, including a minor (juvenile), were involved in the brutal rape and murders. 
Special Fast Track Court Judge Aanchal of Tis Hazari Court awarded the death sentence to Shahid, Akram and Rafat Ali alias Manzoor Ali for the offence under section 302 (murder) and 120B (criminal conspiracy). 
They have been awarded life imprisonment for the offences of gang rape and robbery. The court has also imposed a fine of Rs 35000 on each convict. The court had convicted the accused persons on August 22.
"There is a constant chain of evidence when the three accused were seen going upstairs to the place of incident and thereafter the heinous crime of three murder, one rape and robbery came into light, thereafter the four including three accused and Juvenile left Delhi one after another, then met at Aligarh on 23.09.2015 where the proceeds of offence was distributed and disposed off and the t-shirts of three accused, scree-driver, the weapon of offence of commission of murder of “S” was found bearing blood stains of deceased and none of the accused presented any hypothesis inconsistent to the finding of their guilt," the court said. 
The court said that it was also proved that the three accused Shahid, Rafat Ali and Akram conspired in the case.
"Call records and accompanying evidence in the form of the recoveries effected in pursuance of disclosure statements prove that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the conspiracy existed between accused Shahid, Akram and Rafat Ali and one JCL before the date of the incident, even on 19.09.2015 and it continued till 23.09.2015, the day when the proceeds of the crime where shared amongst the accused persons," the court noted. 
The court also noted that a pattern was observed that no call was made back-to-back but the calls were made after a lapse of a few minutes or hours. "Rafat Ali left Delhi on 21.09.2015 at about 10 am morning and thereafter Shahid reached Anand Vihar, Delhi at 10:29 pm of the same day on 21.09.2015 to leave Delhi and then his location was at Aligarh at 10:34 am of 22.09.2015," the court said.
The juvenile was in the roaming network since 08:20 am of 22.09.2015 and Akram was out of network of Delhi even at 08:20 am of 23.09.2015 but there was always a call between the one who left Delhi and Shahid and then calls between Shahid and Rafat Ali and similar communication when accused leaving Delhi reached his destination, the court noted.
The court observed, "It is very strange that frequent calls were being exchanged between the SIM used by Shahid and Akram only around the time which matches to the time of the commission of three murders and a number of calls were exchanged between four only on the date of commission of the offence and on 23.09.2015, the day when they were at Aligarh."
"Therefore, though no content of the calls are on record, their call records are showing very unusual conduct, indicating intensely their involvement in the commission of the offence of three murders, rape and robbery," the judge said.
"These are proved as a link connecting them to the crime of the present case and these are also the evidence which proves that the four accused Rafat Ali, Shahid, Akram and Juvenile were sharing a common agreement to commit the offence which is proving that the accused Rafat Ali, Shahid, Akram and Juvenile were sharing a common agreement to commit the offence," the court further noted.
The FIR in the present case was registered on the statement of the husband of the deceased lady 'S' and father of two deceased children who were found dead on the Second Floor of their House in Raghubir Nagar, Delhi on 21.09.2015.
The complainant had stated that he was residing at that very address since the last three years on rent with his wife 'S' and two sons aged seven years and one year respectively and three
daughters, aged six years, three years and two years respectively.
He was a permanent resident of District Kashganj, Uttar Pradesh and used to sell old jeans pants and for this, he used to go to Jaipur every Saturday and in the same manner, he went to Jaipur at about 09.30 pm on 19.09.2015 leaving his wife and children in good health and when he returned on that very very day about 06.00 am and reached on second floor then he found that the door was latched from outside and as he opened the same, he found his wife and one son and one daughter dead and his remaining three children were sleeping on the floor and there was blood in the neck and nose of his wife and her neck was tied with dupatta, whereas neck of his daughter was tied with a handkerchief, and finding them in such condition, he got perplexed and started crying due to which his three children got awake and then he called his brother-in-law (Saala) and one Azim.
During this course, someone called the police and he had doubts on his landlord Fahim for the murder of his wife and children and he intended that he may be enquired.
On 21.09.2015, he also stated that on checking his house, he found that one silver anklet, gold earrings (jhumki), silver maangteeka coated with gold, two pairs of silver hathphool, silver dastana, two necklaces of artificial jewellery and a sum of Rs 18,550 were not there.
When he enquired at his level, Shabbu son of another tenant, who resides on first floor of the same house, said that last night at about 09.45 pm, Akram and 'H' alias 'F' (minor) and two boys ascending the stair, went into the room of deceased and locked the door and he had not seen any person other than them going there.
The complainant informed that he doubted that Akram, H and his two friends had taken those articles and committed murder of his wife and children. He gave the name of the father and address of the accused Akram and also stated that he knew Akram and H.
On the basis of the post-mortem report of deceased 'S', Section 376 (Rape) IPC was added. Further, on receipt of information from the informer, two accused Shahid and Mohd. Akram were apprehended on 04.10.2015 from a park near HMP Raghuvir Nagar.
They were interrogated and they disclosed the commission of murder, robbery and gang rape with the deceased by them along with their associates Manzoor and H and the case was converted u/S 376(D) IPC. The two accused Shahid and Akram were arrested.
One mobile phone with two IMEI numbers with SIM cards was found in possession of accused Shahid, whereas a black colour Lava mobile phone bearing two IMEIs with SIM cards and some money was found in possession of accused Akram.
The juvenile was arrested from Khajuri Chowk and Rafat Ali was arrested from Aligarh.