The Palghar court district today sentenced a 33-year-old farmer to life imprisonment after convicting him for killing a woman and her son and seriously injuring her daughter-in-law. Additional Sessions Judge Dr. MS Deshpande also fined Sharad Devu Katela ₹9,000 while pronouncing the judgment on Friday.
According to Additional Public Prosecutor SB Sawant, the convict is a resident of Farlepada, Manor, in the district. The victims too lived in the same village and were his relatives. The victims and Katela have differences over many issues. The victims also complained to the police against Katela, said Sawant.
The court stated that on the morning of August 4, 2017, Katela attacked the male victim, Sakharam Laxman Katela, with a cudgel. When his mother Laxmi and wife Suchita intervened and assaulted them too.
While Sakharam and Laxmi died, Suchita suffered grievous injuries. The defense sought leniency on the grounds Katela is a poor farmer and has young children to take care of, while the prosecution sought capital punishment.
After hearing the arguments, the court sentenced Katela to life imprisonment saying the case did not fall in the “rarest of rare” category. It said some leniency can be shown over the fine and limited it to ₹9,000.
