Mumbai: After being in jail again for nearly 48 hours, Chintan Upadhyay, who was found guilty of abetting and conspiring to murder his estranged artist wife Hema Upadhyay and her lawyer Harish Bhambhani, was produced before the sessions court on Saturday sporting a shaved head. Sessions judge SY Bhosale had found him guilty on October 5, after which he was taken into custody from the court premises. He was out on bail for two years.
Upadhyay was brought along with three other accused – Shiv Kumar Rajbhar, Pradip Kumar Rajbhar and Vijay Kumar Rajbhar – by the prison authorities in a police van at 1.20pm.
Judge Bhosale called them one by one and explained the sections under which they were found guilty and the minimum and maximum sentences that can be awarded. He first called the Rajbhars to the witness box and explained, “You have been found guilty under section 302 for murder. For that the minimum sentence is life and maximum is death.”
They were found guilty for destroying evidence for which the maximum punishment is seven years. They were also found guilty for dishonest misappropriation of property possessed by a deceased person at the time of his death, for which the maximum sentence is three years. Their advocates RR Mishra, Vijay Yadav and Anil Jadhav explained the sentence to them in Hindi.
Co-Accused Broke Down During Time Of Judgment
On being asked if they have anything to say, Vijay Rajbhar broke down and with folded hands said he has three children and they have not been able to get admission in any school for the last three years. “I am the sole earning member. My father-in-law has passed away and there is no one to take their (wife and children) responsibility,” he said.
Pradip Rajbhar said that his parents are aged and he is the only earning member. “I have a brother who is still very young. My entire family is dependent on me,” he said.
Shiv Kumar, the second youngest of the accused, said he was just 18 at the time of arrest. The youngest was a minor and was sent to a juvenile home; his trial was separated. He said, “Whatever sentence you (judge) want to give, please give the least. I have already spent eight years already (in jail). I am unmarried,” he said. He was a minor at the time of the crime and was sent to a juvenile home. Finally, the judge called Upadhyay and explained that he has been found guilty of abetment and conspiracy for which the minimum sentence was life imprisonment and maximum is death penalty.
Upadhyay said his conscience is clear and he did not commit any crime. But he said that as the court found him guilty, he will accept the punishment and will not ask for mercy. “Whatever appropriate punishment is there I am willing to face. I believe in law and judiciary,” Upadhyay added.
