Calcutta High Court commuted the death penalty of two convicts found guilty of raping a child, sentencing them to 60 years in prison. The Court said their acts showed “depravity that shocks the conscience,” demanding serious punishment.
The Calcutta High Court upheld the conviction of two menIn a case involving the abduction, gang rape, and murder of a 5-year-old girl in West Bengal, but the High Court reduced their death sentences to life imprisonment without the possibility of remission for 60 years.
A division bench consisting of Justices Debangsu Basak and Md. Shabbar Rashidi delivered this ruling while reviewing a death reference and a criminal appeal against a trial court’s June 2023 decision in Jhargram, which had sentenced the two men, Fagun Mandi @ Pui and another, to death.
The minor was reported missing on November 7, 2021.
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Witnesses indicated that she was last seen with Fagun Mandi @ Pui (Appellant No. 1), who was observed buying biscuits and tobacco before leading the child toward a nearby field. Her body was subsequently discovered in a canal area within a paddy field, based on the disclosure statements of both men.
The prosecution established Appellant No. 2’s involvement through circumstantial evidence, such as the recovery of a locket with the victim’s photo from his residence and his assistance to the police in locating the victim’s body.
The post-mortem report confirmed that the child had suffered aggravated penetrative sexual assault, including injuries from the insertion of a bamboo stick into her private parts, and that she had ultimately been strangled.
Eyewitnesses, including the victim’s relatives and neighbors, supported the timeline and movements of the accused preceding the girl’s disappearance. Multiple prosecution witnesses testified that the victim’s body and associated items, such as a chocolate wrapper and a burnt biri stub, were recovered with the appellants’ guidance.
The defense contended that the prosecution relied exclusively on circumstantial evidence, raised concerns about inconsistencies related to the recovery site, and identified procedural errors along with the inadmissibility of certain evidence.
They also emphasized the appellants’ disadvantaged socio-economic status, limited education, and mental health issues, arguing against the application of the death penalty. While affirming the conviction, the high court noted that the appellants did not provide any explanation for their presence with the victim or for the incriminating items found with them.
The court referenced the Supreme Court’s ruling in Manoj & Others v. State of Madhya Pradesh, which stipulates that the death penalty should only be applied when the potential for reformation is unequivocally eliminated. It acknowledged that both appellants had no prior criminal records, came from extremely impoverished and underprivileged backgrounds, and had exhibited positive behavior while in custody.
The court determined that it could not conclusively state that both appellants’ chances for reformation were entirely foreclosed.
Consequently, it stated,
“We are not minded to confirm the death penalty imposed by the learned trial judge, on the appellants.”
Concluding that a mere life sentence would be inadequate, the court remarked,
“These conducts of the appellants demonstrate a quality of depravity which shocks the conscience. (So) Balance has to be struck between the gravity of the offence and the quantum of punishment to be imposed,”
Therefore, it commuted the death sentence to life imprisonment without the possibility of remission for 60 years from the date of the offense. It also instructed correctional authorities to update their records and consider the time already served in custody as part of the sentence.
Case Title: The State of West Bengal Vs. Fagun Mandi @ Pui and Another
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