Marri Srinivas Reddy, 29, the sole accused in the rape and murder of three minor girls between 2015 and 2019 in Hajipur village of Yadadri-Bhuvanagiri district, was sentenced to death by the designated Special Court here on Thursday.
Nalgonda First Additional District and Sessions Judge S.V.V. Natha Reddy found him guilty, under various sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO), of kidnap, rape of minors and concealing the evidence.
The victims were aged 11, 17 and 14 years.
The death penalty given for the three crimes chargesheeted separately also included back-to-back life imprisonment, and the capital punishment is subject to confirmation by the Telangana High Court.
All the sentences run concurrently, and the accused can to challenge the punishment in the High Court, Judge Natha Reddy told Srinivas Reddy in the full house court room at 6.30 p.m.
It was at 2 p.m. when the Judge told Srinivas Reddy that the police have proved his role in the three crimes and gave him an opportunity to speak before the verdict was pronounced.
“I have no one and nothing left, even my house was destroyed by the villagers. I did not commit those crimes, the police beat me up and framed me,” he wept with folded hands.
The court broke for lunch, and the verdict came only after a long four-and-a-half hour break.
“In the first case, you are awarded life imprisonment for murder, 20 years and seven years imprisonment for rape and concealing evidence respectively. For the second and third crimes, death penalty under section 302 IPC, 20 years imprisonment each under section 376 for rape, kidnap under section 366 and seven years separately for concealing evidence. And a fine of ₹5,000 in each case,” the Judge said .
In all the three cases, the Court heard testimonies of 101 witnesses in a trial spread over 42 days in October and November last year. The recording of evidence was completed on January 17 and the verdict was scheduled for January 27, however, it was postponed for Thursday.
It was on April 26 last year, a day after a 14-year-old girl of Hajipur village in Bommalaramaram mandal was found dead in an abandoned agriculture well that clues of rapes and murder of the other two minor girls surfaced.
Rachakonda police, who presented the only accused Srinivas Reddy before media on April 30, said he had offered the girls lift on his bike, kidnapped, raped, murdered and buried them in his two agriculture wells.
The revelations of the crimes and exhumation of the girls’ skeletal remains from the wells not only shook the whole State, but demand for his death by hanging became stronger.
Family members, villagers, politicians, women and voluntary organisations who have been demanding the death sentence, erupted in joy after the verdict on Thursday.
Defence lawyer appointed by the Court S.R. Tagore, speaking to The Hindu said his arguments in favour of Srinivas Reddy were that the police could not assert clear evidence of his role in the crimes.
“My argument always was that the police only had incriminating evidence. Anyway, I respect the judgment, and the accused can still appeal to the High Court,” he said.
Rachakonda police commissioner Mahesh Bhagwat expressed happiness over the judgment, and said all the oral, scientific, medical and technical evidence collected by police helped establish the crimes.