New Delhi: The Supreme Court yesterday commuted to life imprisonment the death sentence awarded to former Youth Congress leader Sushil Sharma for killing his wife and attempting to dispose off her body in a restaurant’s tandoor (clay oven).
“The offence is brutal but the brutality alone would not justify death sentence in this case,” the court said, adding that there still was a chance for reforming Sharma, who suspected his wife’s fidelity and was possessive about her.
Upholding the conviction of Sushil Sharma, the apex court bench of Chief Justice P Sathasivam, Justice R P Desai and Justice Ranjan Gogoi said: “We commute the death sentence awarded to appellant — Sushil Sharma — to life sentence.”
“We make it clear that life sentence is for the whole of remaining life of the appellant subject to the remission granted by the appropriate government...,” the judges said.
“The murder was the outcome of strained personal relationship. It was not an offence against the society,” the court said, adding that Sharma has spent more than 10 years in death cell.
“It was not an offence against the society. The appellant has no criminal antecedents. He is not a confirmed criminal and no evidence is led by the state to indicate that he is likely to revert to such crimes in future,” the court said.
“It is, therefore, not possible in the facts of the case to say that there is no chance of the appellant being reformed and rehabilitated. We do not think that that option is closed,” the court said.
Commuting the sentence to life imprisonment, the court said: “Though it may not be strictly relevant, we may mention that the appellant is the only son of his parents, who are old and infirm. As of today, the appellant has spent more than 10 years in death cell.”
Dwelling on whether the dead body of Naina Sahni was cut, the court said: “The medical evidence does not establish that the dead body of the deceased was cut.”
IANS
