Eye-witness account of three minor children has led to their father's conviction by a Delhi court which sent him to jail for 20 years for "brutally" stabbing to death his wife for suspected illicit relation.
District Judge J R Aryan awarded life term to Raghunandan, 42, while making it clear that he shall not be released until he serves at least 20 years in jail.
"A sentence of life imprisonment is awarded to accused but then considering the brutality ...He shall not come out of jail until he serves at least 20 years of imprisonment including period already undergone," the court said.
Raghunandan, a vegetable vendor residing in northeast Delhi, was held guilty of murdering his wife Meena Devi on the basis of testimony of three of his four minor children, who had witnessed the crime. He had also attacked one of their daughters when she intervened, injuring her.
The prosecution case was that on the intervening night of July 14-15, 2010, Raghunandan came home from work and sent his kids to sleep. At around 1:30 AM, three minors woke up to shrieks of their mother and found their father stabbing her. The left hand of the victim was severed and there were severe injuries on vital parts of the body including the neck.
After the incident, Raghunandan reached Nandnagri Police station with a blood stained knife and informed the police personnel present there that he has assaulted his wife whom he suspected of having illicit relation.
He said that she wanted to get married to someone else.
During the trial, the siblings narrated the scene of crime and said their father had locked their maternal grandparents in an adjoining room before assaulting their mother.
"To my considered view, evidence of this witness stands test of the scrutiny and has not been rendered unbelievable or unacceptable for any reason...," the court said.
"Duration of incident as appearing from circumstances that 16 stab wounds had been caused to the deceased and rather a brutal attack of severing the left hand from the wrist was executed and kids further deposed that they tried to intervene but were pushed aside.
"Rather, injury caused to one of them by accused by his knife would prove that kids had sufficient and enough opportunity to see the assailant and there is no question of these witnesses mistaking identity of the assailant," the court held.
