Court Upholds Cop's Life Term For Killing Wife's 'Lover' At Police Station

Terming the offence "brazen", the Supreme Court on Wednesday upheld the conviction and life imprisonment of a constable who shot dead his brother-in-law with his service weapon inside a police station more than two decades ago as he was irked over the victim's alleged illicit relations with his wife.

A bench comprising Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and Rajesh Bindal trashed the plea of convict Surender Singh that the victim had come to kill him and the offence was committed in self-defence and hence, cannot be termed murder under the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

"On every possible count, the case is nothing but a case of murder. The nature of the weapon used, the number of gunshots fired at the deceased, the part of the body where the gunshots were fired -- all point towards the fact that the appellant was determined to kill the deceased. Ultimately, he achieved his task and made sure that the deceased was dead. By no stretch of logic is it a case of any lesser magnitude and definitely not culpable homicide not amounting to murder," Justice Dhulia said in the 23-page judgment.

The top court refused to interfere with the judgments of the trial court and the Delhi High Court and vacated an interim order granting bail to the convict. "The facts of the case would reveal that the present case is of a brazen murder, committed inside a police station in Delhi," it said.

"Accordingly, this appeal is dismissed. The interim order dated April 2, 2012 granting bail to the appellant hereby stands vacated and the appellant is hereby directed to surrender before the trial court within four weeks from today. A copy of this judgment shall be sent to the trial court to ensure that the appellant surrenders and undergoes the remaining part of his sentence," the judgment said.

The victim was married to the convict's first cousin and was also his neighbour, the prosecution told the court.

According to the prosecution, the victim was in an illicit relationship with the convict's wife and on June 30, 2002, had gone to the Mayur Vihar police station where the convict was posted.

The victim and the convict were last seen together in a conversation with each other inside the police station, minutes before witnesses -- other police personnel -- saw the convict kill the victim with his official 9-mm carbine.

The convict contended that he committed the crime in self-defence and, in the alternative, if self-defence is not accepted by the court, then it was a case of grave and sudden provocation at best, which led to the victim's death at the hands of the appellant.

"In other words, if at all, the appellant can be punished only for culpable homicide not amounting to murder," the convict said, but his plea was rejected by the court.

"Taken together, all these pieces of evidence are unassailable. The case of the prosecution stands secured on this evidence. It is a clear case of murder. The motive for the appellant (admittedly, the deceased was having an affair with the appellant's wife) and the execution of the crime at the police station -- all point towards the murder committed inside the police station by the present appellant.

"The one firearm injury with blackening at the entry point also explains that the deceased was first shot at from a close range. The remaining injuries also correlate with the testimony of the eyewitnesses referred above," the court said.

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