Acid thrower serves 7 years,HC sends him back to jail for life

Bangalore Mirror

Bangalore, 06 September 2011:  Shruti Satyanarayana had dreamt of becoming a doctor. But all her dreams were singed by an acid attack in August 2002.

 

Shruti, an SSLC student then, was good looking. Rajesh, a school drop-out, had his eyes on her. He proposed to her, but Shruti being academic-minded, spurned the offer.

 

Mad with rage, Rajesh splashed acid on the girl, while she was returning to her Shakambari Nagar home, on the evening of August 12, 2002. Shruti sustained severe burn injuries on her face, upper body and abdomen. She survived, but her face was disfigured beyond repair.

Shruti: Before the attack

Rajesh was convicted and sentenced to seven years’ imprisonment by a lower court. He served the sentence and came out of jail in April 2011. Shruti feared that the person who wrecked her life, being a free man once again, would attack her again. She approached the police to get his sentence enhanced.

 

Inspector S K Umesh of J P Nagar police station and special public prosecutor Chandramouli approached the High Court of Karnataka on Shruti’s behalf. 

 

The court conducted a quick hearing and increased Rajesh’s prison term from seven years to life imprisonment. Rajesh was arrested by the police on Saturday and sent to Parappana Agrahara.

Shruti: After the attack

Enhancing Rajesh’s sentence, the HC observed that it was a rarest of rare crimes and deserved more punishment. The court has directed Rajesh to provide a compensation of Rs 5 lakh to Shruthi, who has no source of income to survive in life. 

 

Failing to do so, the attacker would have to serve an additional two-year prison term. Inspector Umesh said, “The acid attack on Shruthi had drawn huge anger from civil society. The then police top-brass had taken it as a challenge to get the accused arrested and sent to jail. But the punishment meted out by the lower court was inadequate. An immediate appeal had been filed in the high court, but the decision came after the acid attacker came out of jail, completing the sentence given by the lower court.”

 

Shruthi’s father, Satyanarayana, a tailor, said, “My daughter was good at studies. She was returning home on the evening of Aug 12, 2002, when Rajesh splashed acid on her. She sustained burns on the right side of her face and upper body.