5 convicted in 2008 murder case of journalist Soumya Vishwanathan
What's the story
Delhi's Saket Court on Wednesday convicted all five accused in the 2008 murder case of journalist Soumya Vishwanathan, PTI reported. The 25-year-old journalist working with India Today was shot dead in her car while returning home from work at 3:30am in South Delhi's Nelson Mandela Marg. The court asked the state to file an affidavit stating the socio-economic condition of the convicts.
Details
4 convicted under MCOC Act
The court convicted accused Ravi Kapoor, Amit Shukla, Ajay Kumar, and Baljeet Malik under sections of the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime (MCOC) Act while convicting the fifth accused Ajay Sethi for receiving stolen property. Sethi reportedly ran a crime syndicate. Barring Sethi, all four were charged with murder. The police had claimed that Vishwanathan was killed during a robbery.
Case
Accused chased and shot Vishwanathan in the head: Police
Vishwanathan was initially assumed to have died in a car accident, but forensic reports showed that she died after being shot in the head. The police suspected the convicts chased and shot at her from another vehicle. Subsequently, the Mumbai-based crime branch teams were called in, India Today reported. During interrogation, they confessed to the murder, calling it a "thrilling activity."
Investigation
Accused were also involved in murder of Jigisha Ghosh
All five accused were arrested and have been in custody since March 2009. The police cracked the case after recovering the firearm used to murder call center executive Jigisha Ghosh. CCTV footage showed a maroon car was used in both Ghosh and Vishwanathan's murders. Forensic reports also showed the bullets matched the firearms owned by the accused.
Information
Kapoor, Shukla sentenced for Ghosh's murder
The trial began in February 2010. The trial court in 2016 sentenced Kapoor and Shukla to death while sentencing Malik to life imprisonment for Ghosh's murder. However, in 2018, the Delhi High Court commuted Kapoor and Shukla's death penalty to life sentences.
Appeal
Convict moved plea for speedy trial
In 2019, Malik filed a plea before the Delhi HC, seeking a speedy trial and a report explaining why the trial had not concluded despite the chargesheet being filed 10 years ago. The trial court stated in its report that the trial was held up due to the absence of prosecution witnesses and the delay in the appointment of a special public prosecutor.