The Madras High Court today commuted the death sentence awarded to an accused in a triple murder case to life imprisonment, observing that it did not fall in the "rarest of rare category."
A division bench, comprising Justice M Jaichandren and Justice S Nagamuthu, in its order, said that prosecution has failed to prove the motive for a multiple murder and modified a lower court's order of death sentence to that of life term to the accused.
The bench was passing orders on the referred trial by the government against the order of Mahila court Sessions Judge at Coimbatore on March 17 last year and also an appeal filed by the accused Selvam.
Mahila Court Judge M P Subramanian had held the accused guilty of the triple murder over enmity with his previous landlord and awarded two punishments -- one each for the murder of the children, including a 11-month old baby, and life imprisonment for killing the woman.
He was sentenced to another life imprisonment for trespassing into the house. The judge also imposed a fine of Rs 1,000 each for the murders stating that failure to pay it would attract additional six months' rigorous imprisonment. Life sentences would run concurrently, the judge had said.
Selvam was residing in the house of a old woman as a tenant at Ramakrishna Puram in Coimbatore. He had paid an advance amount of Rs.8500 and vacated the house on May 5,2014.
On June 1 of that year when Selvam demanded the advance amount, she said she owed him only Rs 3,200 and that the amount would be returned immediately after a new tenant moved in. Selvam then left the house.
But on the same day evening her daughter Vasthaladevi, and Vasthaladevi's two sons were brutally murdered in the house. Selvam was arrested on June 2.
While confirming the conviction under IPC section 302 for the murder of the children, the bench modified the death sentence to life term of 25 years each which would run concurrently.
It said the accused "is not entitled to any remission and the period of sentence already undergone shall be set off."
The bench rejected the contention of the prosecution that not returning the advance amount was motive for the murder.
"Thus, in our considered view though the prosecution has proved that a sum of Rs.3,200 was due from the landlord that would not constitute a motive for the accused to commit the murders of these three innocent people.
