A court in Maharashtra's Thane district has sentenced a man to life imprisonment for the brutal murder of his wife, whom he attacked 22 times with a hammer in front of his children. The conviction was based largely on the testimony of his 13-year-old daughter.
Court Verdict and Charges
Principal District and Sessions Judge S B Agrawal found Vijay Mishra alias Samir Shaikh guilty under Sections 302 (murder) and 324 (voluntarily causing hurt by dangerous weapons) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). The court sentenced him to life imprisonment along with a three-year term to be served concurrently. Additionally, a fine of Rs 1 lakh was imposed for the murder charge, and an extra Rs 10,000 for injuring his minor daughter and mother-in-law, who attempted to intervene during the fatal attack.
Additional Public Prosecutor Rashmi Kshirsagar informed the court that 11 prosecution witnesses, including the accused's daughter, were examined during the trial.
Background of the Case
According to the prosecution, the victim, Zarin Israr Ansari, had been living with her mother, along with her daughter and a six-year-old son, for two years following prolonged domestic violence and disputes. The accused, who had converted to Islam to marry Zarin 14 years earlier, harboured deep resentment over her living separately and suspected her character.
On the afternoon of September 28, 2023, the accused stormed into his mother-in-law's residence in Mumbra with a hammer concealed in a bag. He cornered his wife on the mezzanine floor, dragged her down, locked the main door, and repeatedly bludgeoned her.
Testimony of the Daughter
The court defended the testimony of the victim's 13-year-old daughter, who was an eyewitness and sustained injuries herself. The judge noted that minor inconsistencies do not degrade the core truth of an innocent child's account. The court stated: "...they are not of any significant consequence since it is not expected from such a witness of 10 years of age to have a total photographic memory to be reproduced before the court. But as far as the incident is concerned, evidence of this witness is totally free from any reasonable doubt."
Sequence of Events
The prosecution also stated that the accused locked his family inside and threatened a neighbour by brandishing a "bomb-like thing" and declaring he would blow up the building if anyone intervened. The victim's brother eventually broke down the latched door, disarmed the accused, and pinned him down until the police arrived.
The post-mortem report revealed that the victim suffered 22 brutal injuries and died due to severe head wounds.
