INDIA: MAN GETS HC REPRIEVE: SENTENCE COMMUTED FROM DEATH TO LIFE

a division bench of Justices RP Dholakia and Justice ZK Saiyad commuted the death sentence awarded to a rape-and-murder case accused to life imprisonment. A sessions court in Valsad sentenced 19 year old Santosh Harijan to death for raping and killing a seven-year-old girl in Vapi. He challenged the order in the high court through his lawyer Jatin Budhbhatti. The tribal girl was found dead in June 2008. Her mother lodged a case against Raju Langdo, as she left her daughter in his custody before going to work. However, during the investigation Santosh emerged as the prime suspect. The police officer investigating the crime said Langdo was not involved and it was 19-year-old Santosh who raped the girl before killing her by thrashing her head on a cement block.