Suspended RPF constable gets death in triple-murder case

RAMGARH: A local court here sentenced Pawan Kumar Singh, a suspended Railway Protection Force (RPF) constable who was found guilty of brutally killing three of a family of a railway porter, to death calling it the rarest of the rare crime. Among the deceased was a pregnant woman. The incident took place at the railway colony under the Barkakana outpost police station on August 17, 2019.
Confirming the sentence, public prosecutor R B Rai, said, “The court of additional district judge-1, Sheshnath Singh, awarded the death sentence to the guilty constable. Pawan opened fire with his service revolver at the railway porter, 55-year-old Ashok Ram, his wife Leela Devi (49) and pregnant daughter Meena Devi (32). Two others — Ram’s daughter Suman Kumari and son Chintu Kumar — sustained bullet injuries.”
Rai further said, “During the hearing for pronouncement of the quantum of sentence, the prosecution side pleaded for the death sentence, calling it as a rarest of the rare cases. They argued that the constable was given the revolver to safeguard railway passengers and railway property and not murder civilians. The court agreed with our plea and the guilty was handed over capital punishment.”
The court awarded the death sentence under Section 302 of the IPC, 10-year rigorous imprisonment and Rs 10,000 fine under Section 307 of the IPC and an additional one-year imprisonment if the fine is not paid. Under Section 27 of the Arms Act, one-year imprisonment and a fine of Rs 10,000 were also slapped against the accused. “All imprisonment will run concurrently,” Rai added. The deceased, Ram, had a milk-vending business besides working as a railway porter. While lodging the FIR, Ram’s son Chintu said that on August 17, 2019, Pawan opened fire with his service revolver after his family refused to give him milk due to outstanding payments. Singh was later suspended by RPF with immediate effect and his revolver was seized before he was arrested from his native village in Bihar. The National Commission for Schedule Tribe and Schedule Caste had directed the district administration for a timely investigation into the case.