Mangaluru High Court Upholds Death Sentence in Ulaibettu Gangrape and Murder Case
Mangaluru: In a ruling delivered on Thursday, the High Court affirmed the death sentences awarded to three individuals convicted in the heinous gangrape and murder of a minor girl at the Ulaibettu Tile Factory in Vamanjoor. The court stated unequivocally that reducing the severity of the punishment would serve to encourage such atrocities and disseminate a detrimental message throughout society.
The bench dismissed appeals filed by Mukesh Singh, of Madhya Pradesh, and Manish Tirkey, of Jharkhand, both seeking the cancellation of the death sentences initially imposed by the trial court. The High Court, in its order, emphasized that the successive acts of rape, committed with utter disregard for the victim’s life, constituted not merely a crime, but an act that profoundly shocked the conscience of the entire community. The court deemed the death penalty a justified recourse in response to such appalling depravity.
The victim, a young girl of just 7-8 years of age, placed her trust in the accused. The court noted that the accused had lured her away under the false pretense of providing her with snacks before proceeding to gratify their perverse desires. Medical reports indicated that the victim sustained severe injuries to her private parts and experienced profuse bleeding as a result of the assault.
The reprehensible incident occurred on November 21, 2021, at a tile factory located near Vamanjoor. The accused were employed as laborers at the factory. The victim, the daughter of a woman working at the same factory, was led to a room by Manish Tirkey and subsequently subjected to sexual assault by the other two accused. Following the assault, the perpetrators strangled the girl to death and disposed of her body in a drain in an attempt to conceal their crime and destroy incriminating evidence.
The victim’s mother filed a formal complaint with the police upon discovering the body. Law enforcement officials conducted a thorough investigation, collecting crucial evidence, including CCTV footage and Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) reports, before submitting a comprehensive charge sheet to the trial court. The trial court ultimately found the accused guilty of the charges brought against them and sentenced them to death, along with a fine of 40,000 rupees each.
The accused subsequently challenged this verdict by appealing to the High Court. However, after careful consideration of the gravity of the crime and its profound impact on society, the High Court fully upheld the trial court’s verdict, confirming the death sentences. The Bench, in its concluding remarks, asserted that this case represented not only a shock to the conscience of the judiciary but also a dreadful incident that has shaken the conscience of the entire society.
