Saketri man's murder convicts awarded RI for life

The seven accused convicted of murdering a Saketri resident by dragging him on the Panchkula-Chandigarh road on Holi day in 2017 were awarded rigorous imprisonment for life.

The sessions court of Ved Parkash Sirohi while pronouncing the judgement said, "All the convicts have been proved to be members of an unlawful assembly and being armed with deadly weapons, indulged in rioting and forcibly entered into the house of complainant, abducted Virender Singh and committed his murder."

The court said Manmeet Waraich, Harmanpreet Singh and Jashanpreet were also proved to have kept in their conscious possession one sword each in contravention of provisions of Arms Act, adding that they did not deserve any leniency in the matter of sentence.

It also announced RI for three years along with fine of Rs. 5,000 to Manmeet, Harmanpreet and Jashanpreet, who were convicted under the Arms Act, and RI for one year and fine of Rs. 1,000 to Manmeet, Trilok, Vishal and Talwinder, convicted for causing disappearance of evidence.

Convicts Manmeet, son of a former councillor, and Tirlok of Panchkula, Vishal of Chandigarh and Harmanpreet, Talwinder, Manjot and Jashanpreet of Punjab were all aged between 20 and 24 at the time of the murder. Their rivalry with the victim went back a year before the incident.