The Supreme Court has granted 15 days parole to a woman, who was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment for committing cold-blooded murder of then BJP MLA Raj Kishore Kesri from Purnia, Bihar, to attend her daughter’s marriage.
Kesri was accused of rape and sexual exploitation by school principal Rupam Pathak, who stabbed him to death in 2011.
A Bench led by Chief Justice (CJI) N.V. Ramana granted 15-day parole, after Additional Solicitor General (ASG) S.V. Raju, appearing for CBI, told the Court that the accused has to attend her daughter’s marriage and it’s verified by him.
Rupam is currently serving Rigorous Imprisonment for life in the murder case. Her earlier bail applications were dismissed by the Patna High Court.
The present petition challenged the the Patna High Court order of January 14, 2020, which dismissed her bail application during the pendency of her appeal against conviction.
The High Court had rejected the contention of the counsel appearing for her by noting that her earlier bail pleas were dismissed on three counts. It further noted that the Supreme Court had earlier dismissed her bail.
Before the High Court, the counsel appearing for her had argued that she had spent over eight years in custody and there is no likelihood of the appeal being heard in the near future and in view of that, she may be granted interim bail, considering the long detention.
Objecting the same, the Counsel appearing for CBI submitted that instead of hearing the bail application, her appeal should be taken up for final hearing. Against that order, the appellant has moved the Supreme Court.
The top court had, on January 5, 2022, issued notice returnable in four weeks.
Advocate-on-Record (AOR) Neeraj Shekhar filed an application today, seeking parole and was directed by the Court to serve copy to the CBI counsel.
In her appeal before the High Court, the accused had submitted that she was chargesheeted by CBI under Section 304 of Indian Penal Code (IPC) but in course of trial, the charge was altered to Section 302 of IPC.
“Having considered the matter, we find that the first information report (FIR) was registered under Section 302 of IPC. The appellant had carried a knife concealed in her shawl.
She first gave the fatal blow to the deceased, tried to repeat injuring the deceased once again and then when the bodyguard intervened to save him, he was also injured.
The FIR was registered under Section 302 of IPC. After some time, the investigation was handed over to CBI, which, for some peculiar reason though noticing all these facts, chose to file a charge sheet under Section 304 of IPC.
In course of trial, noticing the evidence which was consistent with the FIR, the charge was altered under Section 302 of IPC.
“The appellant was arrested on the spot. She is educated. The crime, prima facie, is pre-meditated, a cold-blooded murder,” the High Court had noted.