Bombay HC upholds life sentence of man for killing girlfriend, attempting suicide

Mumbai: The Bombay High Court has upheld the conviction and life sentence imposed on a man for killing his 20-year-old girlfriend in a hotel room in 2008 and then attempting to commit suicide.

Terming the incident as a case of gruesome murder of a girl at the hands of her boyfriend , a division bench of Justices Prasanna Varale and Shrikant Kulkarni noted that the 19 injuries found on the victim's body clearly indicated the way the accused had planned to eliminate her.

The High Court had passed the order on June 27 and a copy of the same was made available on Wednesday.

The court noted that Giri, who was 30 years old at the time, had murdered his girlfriend Samantha Fernandes suspecting her of infidelity and then attempted to kill himself by first inflicting injuries and then by consuming poison.

The High Court upheld the order passed by a sessions court in May 2012 convicting Giri for murder and attempted suicide and sentencing him to life imprisonment.

As per the prosecution, Samantha and Giri were found in a hotel room at Rabale in Navi Mumbai on March 20, 2008. The police had rushed the duo to a hospital, where Samantha, who had stab wounds, was declared dead on arrival, but Giri regained consciousness and was later arrested.

The high court, while dismissing Giri's appeal against his conviction, noted that the evidence submitted by the prosecution was clear and unambiguous , and the circumstances prove the guilt of the accused and the same was not weakened even if no satisfactory evidence about the motive behind the killing is brought on record.

The evidence relied upon by the prosecution has unerringly pointed out to the participation and involvement of Giri in the murder of Samantha, it said.

The court also refused to accept Giri's argument that he and his girlfriend were attacked by three unidentified men and termed it as a bundle of false explanation.