Man sentenced to life imprisonment for killing woman during rape attempt

Thane, Apr 2 (PTI) A court in Maharashtra’s Thane district has sentenced a man to life imprisonment for stabbing a 32-year-old woman to death after she resisted a rape attempt. Additional sessions judge Abhay N Sirsikar found the accused, Babu alias Sameer Gopal Gogawale (29), guilty of charges under sections 452 (house trespass), 302 (murder) and other relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code and sentenced him to life imprisonment. In an order passed on March 30, the court also imposed a fine of Rs 3,000 on the accused. Additional public prosecutor Rashmi Kshirsagar informed the court that the victim, Lata alias Rakhi Rahul Shejwal lived with her husband and two sons in the Kopri locality of Thane city. On October 2, 2016, when the victim’s husband and children were away, the accused entered their home, tried to sexually assault her and stabbed her to death when she resisted his advances, the prosecutor said.

The victim’s husband later rushed home and found her dead. Fifteen prosecution witnesses were examined during the trial. The judge in his order noted that the accused had sustained scratch wounds on his chest and hand, which indicated that he had attempted to rape the woman and was injured when she resisted. “There can’t be direct evidence about the motive. The motive has to be inferred from the facts and circumstances of the case. Considering the injuries caused to the accused, an inference can be drawn that the accused committed house trespass with the intent to commit rape upon the deceased and on resistance by her, he committed her murder,” the order stated.