HC commutes death sentence in 2023 Dhupguri murder case

Kolkata: The Calcutta High Court’s Circuit Bench at Jalpaiguri has commuted the death sentence awarded to one Aftab Alam, who was convicted for murdering his uncle during a violent dacoity at the latter’s house in Dhupguri in July 2023.

The division bench of Justice Sabyasachi Bhattacharyya and Justice Uday Kumar upheld Alam’s conviction but substituted the capital punishment with life imprisonment.

According to the prosecution, the incident took place around 1 am on July 28, 2023, when Alam and five co-accused entered victim Mehtab’s residence. While Mehtab was sleeping with his two sons in one room, his wife Moumita was asleep in an adjacent room.

The assailants stabbed Moumita multiple times before moving to the next room and killing Mehtab. Moumita survived by feigning death and later alerted neighbours, who took her to Dhupguri Rural Hospital. The accused were apprehended shortly thereafter near Deomali.

Alam was the only adult among the accused and was tried separately. The trial court sentenced him to death in September 2024, citing the brutal nature of the crime and what it described as a betrayal of trust. The court noted that Aftab, being the nephew of the deceased, had been given shelter by Mehtab following the early death of his father and was raised in the household for several years.

While upholding the conviction under Sections 396, 397 and 398 of the Indian Penal Code, the High Court found that the prosecution had established the chain of events through consistent eyewitness testimony, including that of Moumita and her two sons.

The court ruled that minor discrepancies in witness statements did not undermine the prosecution’s case.

However, in reviewing the sentence, the High Court observed that the trial court had not adequately considered the possibility of reformation. It held that awarding the death penalty in this case did not meet the threshold of the “rarest of rare” category. The bench noted that the appellant had no prior criminal record and had long ceased to reside with the victim’s family.

The court directed that Aftab Alam be imprisoned for life for the offence of dacoity with murder, along with seven years of rigorous imprisonment under two additional charges, to run concurrently. A monetary fine was also imposed.