Delhi HC acquits domestic help accused of rape, murder of 81-year-old woman employer

NEW DELHI: Delhi High Court on Thursday set aside the life term awarded to Neeraj Saifi, a domestic help, who was found guilty by a trial court last year for rape and murder of an 81-year-old woman employer at her house in GK II in July 2014.
A bench of Justice S Muralidhar and Justice Vinod Goel observed that the crime committed was "indeed horrific" where an elderly has been done to death in the most "inhuman" manner. However, it noted that the evidence placed on record by the prosecution had failed to prove that Saifi was responsible for the crime. "Howsoever strong a suspicion might be, it cannot constitute proof and is insufficient to return a finding of guilt. The case against the appellant had to be proved beyond reasonable doubt. The prosecution has failed to do that in the present case," the bench held.

The woman, widow of a journalist, lived on the ground floor and her body was found in a semi-burnt condition on the first floor flat of the four-storey building in Greater Kailash II on July 7, 2014. The senior citizen had been living alone after her husband died in 2005. The incident exposed the vulnerability of senior citizens to heinous crimes in the city. Following a three-year-old trial court, a sessions court had on February 21, 2017 held, "He (Saifi) set the deceased on fire by cutting the pieces of mattress and using the kerosene oil. The act of the convict was brutal and diabolic."

The HC, on Thursday, disagreed with the trial court's conclusion saying that the objects -- plastic bottle of kerosene, a match box, a knife -- recovered from the crime scene that were relied upon by the prosecution to build its case could have been planted."With these common objects being recovered from the room of the accused while he was in custody of the police, the possibility of these objects being planted just to make it appear that it was the accused who used the kerosene to burn the dead body should not be easily disregarded," it observed.

During the trial, a security guard, who was on duty on the night of the murder turned out to be a key witness in the case and was traced to a south Delhi village on the request of the victim's family. He gave vital evidence regarding misleading information that Saifi was offering to the police about the victim being missing. The security guard told the court that the accused was present in the building when the crime took place. "The convict has not only committed the vile act of rape upon the deceased who was an old lady aged 81 years but also strangulated her to death. He was the full-time servant of the deceased. He was engaged to take care of the deceased," the trial court had held.