'Cold-blooded killer': Cal HC upholds life term in pregnant wife murder

Kolkata: The Calcutta High Court has upheld the life sentence of a man convicted of killing his pregnant wife, observing that the crime had claimed “two lives” and describing the accused as a “cold-blooded killer”.

A division bench of Justice Rajasekhar Mantha and Justice Rai Chattopadhyay dismissed the appeal of a Howrah resident who had challenged his conviction by a trial court in connection with the 2014 killing.

According to the prosecution case, the woman was assaulted at her matrimonial home early on January 21, 2014. The couple had been married for about ten years and had children. On the morning of the incident, their young son informed the victim’s father that his father had killed his mother.

Police reached the house soon after receiving the complaint and recovered a blood-stained sabol and a nylon rope from the spot. The accused was arrested from the place of occurrence.

The couple’s minor son told the court that he had seen his father assault his mother through a window of the house. According to his testimony, the accused repeatedly struck the victim with the sabol before tying a rope around her neck and dragging her.

The High Court noted that the trial judge had first tested the child’s ability to understand and answer questions before allowing him to depose. His testimony, the bench said, remained consistent and withstood cross-examination.

The court observed that he had named his father as the attacker immediately after the incident, leaving little scope for fabrication.

The post-mortem examination revealed multiple injuries and a fractured hyoid bone, indicating death by throttling. The woman was found to be about 18 weeks pregnant at the time.

The bench said the accused must have been aware of the pregnancy and had effectively taken two lives. It further observed that the incident did not occur in the heat of the moment. The nature of the assault indicated that it continued for at least 20 to 30 minutes before the victim died, leading the court to describe the appellant as a cold-blooded killer.

The court dismissed the appeal and upheld the life sentence for murder, while noting that the charge of cruelty had not been established during trial.