Lucknow, Sep 21 A sessions court in Lucknow on Monday sentenced a former constable to 10 years' imprisonment after convicting him of culpable homicide not amounting to murder in the killing of an Apple India area sales manager in 2018.
The court on September 17 held the former constable, Prashant Chaudhary, guilty of culpable homicide not amounting to murder. His colleague, constable Sandeep Kumar, who was accompanying him at the time of the incident, was acquitted for want of sufficient evidence.
Sessions Judge Malkhan Singh, while hearing arguments on the quantum of sentence on Monday, awarded Chaudhary 10 years' imprisonment.
The court held that the prosecution had failed to establish any prior intention on the part of Chaudhary to kill Apple India area sales manager, Vivek Tiwari, and that the incident occurred in circumstances that arose suddenly. It therefore convicted him under the offence of culpable homicide not amounting to murder instead of murder.
Vivek's wife, Kalpana Tiwari, expressed dissatisfaction with the verdict. She had earlier said that she expected justice from the court, but the judgment did not meet her expectations.
She had argued that Chaudhary was a trained police officer and had received firearms training. In such circumstances, she questioned how the firing could be treated merely as an accidental act.
Kalpana had said she would challenge the verdict before the High Court. She and Vivek's brother, however, were not present in court when the sentence was pronounced on Monday.
According to the prosecution, at around 1.40 am on September 29, 2018, Vivek was returning home in his car with his colleague Sana Khan.
Near Sarayu Apartments in Gomti Nagar Extension, the two police personnel allegedly attempted to stop the vehicle.
The prosecution alleged that Chaudhary fired at Vivek with his licensed pistol. Sandeep Kumar allegedly assaulted Sana Khan with a baton and also struck the bonnet of the car.
After sustaining the bullet injury, Vivek was taken to Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital, where doctors declared him dead. Following the incident, Sana Khan lodged an FIR at Gomti Nagar police station at around 5 am. At around 7 pm the same day, Vivek's wife Kalpana also lodged an FIR naming both policemen.
Advocate Pranshu Agrawal, appearing for Kalpana, said police filed a chargesheet on December 19, 2018, against Chaudhary under Section 302 (murder) of the IPC and against Kumar under Section 323 (voluntarily causing hurt).
On December 24, 2018, the then chief judicial magistrate took cognisance of the case and committed it to the sessions court.
On March 22, 2019, the then additional district and sessions judge Sanjay Shankar Pandey framed charges against both accused.
Final arguments in the case were concluded on August 6. On September 17, the court convicted Chaudhary of culpable homicide not amounting to murder and acquitted Sandeep Kumar for lack of sufficient evidence.
The 2018 incident had triggered widespread public debate not only in Lucknow but across Uttar Pradesh. Tiwari's death had also raised questions over police conduct and the law-and-order situation in the state.
After a prolonged judicial process, the court has now sentenced Chaudhary to 10 years' imprisonment for culpable homicide not amounting to murder. The co-accused Kumar has been acquitted after the court found insufficient evidence against him.
