Life sentence for four convicts in journalist Soumya Vishwanathan murder case
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New Delhi: A Delhi court handed life imprisonment to four individuals involved in the 2008 killing of TV journalist Soumya Vishwanathan.
The court refrained from imposing the death penalty, citing that the crime did not qualify as the rarest of rare cases. Alongside the life sentences, a fifth convict received a three-year jail term for aiding the perpetrators.
Soumya Vishwanathan, a 25-year-old news producer with Headlines Today, had been working late on September 30, 2008, when the tragic incident occurred. She left the Jhandewalan office at 3:03 am, heading towards her residence in Vasant Kunj.
According to the police investigation, while returning home, Soumya overtook a car occupied by Ravi Kapoor, Amit Shukla, Ajay Kumar, and Baljeet Malik.
Allegedly, the four convicts noticed that Soumya was alone in her vehicle and began tailing her. Attempting to stop her car initially, they intensified their pursuit. Kapoor then fired at Soumya using a countrymade weapon, fatally hitting her in the head. The vehicle collided with a divider on Nelson Mandela Marg, close to her residence, ending her life abruptly.
After the heinous act, the perpetrators fled the scene but later returned to check on the victim's condition. Spotting police presence, they swiftly ran from the area.
The court's decision comes after a lengthy legal process, with the four culprits - Ravi Kapoor, Amit Shukla, Baljeet Malik, and Ajay Kumar - receiving life imprisonment. Ajay Sethi, the fifth convict involved in aiding them, was sentenced to three years in jail.