Both the convicts in the Nikita Tomar murder case, Tosif and his friend Rihan, were sentenced to life imprisonment and fined over ₹20,000 on different counts by the District and Sessions Court here on Friday.
In case of default of fine, the two will have to undergo one year rigorous imprisonment each.
Additional Sessions Judge Sartaj Baswana also separately sentenced the two to five years’ imprisonment and ₹2,000 fine each for criminal conspiracy and kidnapping a woman to compel her for marriage. The two will have to undergo two months’ rigorous imprisonment each in case of default of fine.
Tosif was also convicted under the Arms Act and sentenced to four years’ imprisonment and fined ₹2,000, said Public Prosecutor Sunil Kumar Parmar. The sentences awarded to the two convicts would run concurrently.
Nikita’s father Moolchand Tomar, however, said he was “deeply hurt” by the quantum of sentence, since he expected the convicts to be awarded the death sentence. He said it was “incomplete justice” and he would fight till the end to seek “complete justice” for his daughter.
Haryana Home Minister Anil Vij said the government would study the judgement and move the Punjab and Haryana High Court seeking death penalty for the two.
Earlier, defence counsel P.L. Goyal, opposing the death penalty for the convicts, argued that the crime did not fall in the category of “rarest of the rare”, since the perpetrators did not inflict any brutality on the victim. He argued that the convicts were young, in their early 20s, and had no previous criminal record.
Mr. Goyal said there were many “loopholes” in the prosecution’s case and they would move the Punjab and Haryana High Court against the conviction.
Tosif and Rihan were held guilty by the District and Sessions Court here on Wednesday. The third accused, Ajrudeen, was acquitted.
Nikita was coming out of her college with her friend around 4 p.m. on October 26 last year after taking an exam when Tosif, her former school mate, and Rihan allegedly tried to abduct her in a vehicle. She was shot when she resisted and died during treatment.
