Ankur Panwar's mother, Kailash, says he has been framed and only the CBI can prove his innocence
After the judge pronounced her verdict, Ankur immediately stood up in anger and said, "Maine bola that case CBI ko de dijiye (I had said that the case should go to the CBI)." His lawyer Apeksha Vora asked him to sit down and the judge asked the police to stand close to him to keep a watch.
According to police, he had attacked Preeti, because she had rejected his proposal and he was also jealous of her success. While Ankur was unemployed, Preeti had just got a lucrative job as a staff nurse at a naval hospital in Mumbai and his parents kept taunting him about this.
Crucial witnesses
Out of the 37 witnesses that the prosecutor examined during the trial, three identified Ankur from the acid attack, even though he had tied a handkerchief across his face at the time. He had boarded the same train Preeti had taken to Mumbai and when she got off at Bandra Terminus, he covered his face and put his hands on her shoulder. As she turned to see who it was, he flung acid on her. Preeti's mouth was open, and she swallowed some of the acid. She suffered 12-15% burns on her face, neck, arms and deep internal injuries in her throat. She died a month later - a fact that the defence lawyer used during the trial, claiming that it was medical negligence, not the acid attack that killed Preeti. However, the court rejected this argument.
Unrequited love
One of Preeti's close relatives - the wife of her cousin brother - also testified that Preeti had told her about Ankur's proposal. She told the court that she and Preeti were of the same age and would tell each other everything.
The relative further added, "Around 15 to 20 days before the incident, Preeti had come to our place and I asked her, kya haal hai tere deewane ka (How is your love-crazed suitor), to which she said, kya mai pagal hu uske taraf dekhungi (Am I mad that I will even look at him)? She also told me that Ankur asked her why she is going Mumbai and going there will not be good for her."
Meanwhile, Ankur's mother has declared that she will now go on her own battle for justice and sit on a dharna outside the office of the Union minister of Home Affairs in New Delhi, until a fresh investigation is initiated by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
"We want the case transferred to CBI; only they can give us justice. We don't believe in Maharashtra Police. They arrested my son eight months after the attack; initially they arrested somebody else in the case and later claimed my boy was involved," said Ankur's mother, Kailash.
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Sentencing today
Special Public Prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam asked the court to hold the sentencing till today, so he can argue for maximum sentence. Preeti's family is hoping that the court will sentence Ankur to death.
Timeline
May 2, 2013: Attacked at Bandra Terminus, Preeti Rathi suffers 12-15 per cent burns on her face, neck, arms and deep internal injuries in her throat, as she had swallowed acid
May 8, 2013: First suspect, Pawan Gahlan, is arrested by the GRP from Narela, New Delhi
May 19, 2013: Feeding tube attached to Preeti's stomach. Her chest infection persists
May 22, 2013: Her right lung collapses due to chemical pneumonitis
May 31, 2013: Preeti's kidney stops functioning
June 1, 2013: She dies of multi-organ failure and cardio-respiratory arrest
June 3, 2013: Preeti is cremated around 5 pm, after a day-long protest by her kin. While extending a compensation of R2 lakh, the then Home Minister RR Patil assures them that CBI will probe the murder
Aug 5, 2013: Preeti's father approaches the Bombay High Court, seeking CBI inquiry into the case
Aug 9, 2013: HC grants bail to Gahlan, observing that police had arrested him only on the basis of suspicion
Nov 28, 2013: HC transfers the probe to Mumbai Police
Jan 2014: 45 days after case is transferred to them, Mumbai Crime Branch arrests Ankur Panwar
April 2014: Chargesheet of 1,332 pages filed by Crime Branch
August, 2016: Final arguments completed in the trial
September 7, 2016: Ankur Panwar convicted for murder of Preeti Rathi
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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