The court had convicted the five police officersA Delhi court Wednesday sentenced five Uttar Pradesh policemen to 10 years in jail for the death of a 26-year-old man in custody, saying any lenient view by way of a meagre sentence will be against societal interest.
Additional Sessions Judge Sanjeev Kumar Malhotra awarded the jail term to sub-inspectors Hindveer Singh and Mahesh Mishra and constables Pradeep Kumar, Pushpender Kumar and Haripal Singh for abducting the victim, Sonu, making incorrect entries in the general diary and torturing him to death in 2006.
“The protection of society by stamping out criminal activity is an essential function of the state. It can be achieved by imposing an appropriate sentence,” the order read.
It further stated, “Any lenient view by imposing meagre sentence or taking too sympathetic a view will be counter-productive result-wise in the long run, and against societal interest which needs to be cared for and strengthened by string of deterrences in-built in the sentencing system.”
The court had convicted the five police officers for offences under IPC sections 365 (abducting with intent secretly and wrongfully to confine person); 220 (confinement by person having authority who knows he is acting contrary to law); 167 (public servant framing an incorrect document with intent to cause injury); 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder); 34 (criminal acts done by several persons with a common intention).
According to the complaint lodged by the victim’s father, in September 2006, a property dealer who worked with his son came home with five policemen in civilian clothes. He alleged that they came under the pretext of buying land, abducted his son and tortured him after falsely accusing him of theft.
