Social impact of Crime against Women can’t be lost sight of: HC

Social impact of the crime against women requires “exemplary treatment” to be meted out to the accused, said the High Court of Bombay on Friday while refusing to reduce the life term to 6-year imprisonment to a Mumbaikar for attempting to kill his girlfriend 6 years ago, who had also refused to marry him, despite being in an intimate relationship for 2 years.

“We are conscious that the social impact of the crime against women cannot be lost sight of & per se require exemplary treatment,” said the 2-member High Court bench, comprising Justice SS Shinde & Justice MS Karnik, while rejecting the prayer of the convict, Arumugum Arundatiyar, to reduce his life term to 6 years imprisonment, which he had already served.

Earlier, Mumbai Sessions Court had sentenced Arundatiyar to a life term.

The prosecution argued that Arundatiyar was seeing the young woman, who worked as a baby-sitter, & wanted to marry her.

However, She had refused to marry him, as her family was opposed to the match, following which Arundatiyar had assaulted her twice because she had spurned his proposal.

On May 8, 2014, when the victim was returning home from work by an auto-rickshaw, Arundatiyar barged into the vehicle.

He threatened the auto-driver with a knife & pulled her out of the vehicle. Arundatiyar attacked her with the knife in public. He stabbed her on the neck & also threatened the public, who had tried to intervene.

Though he had fled from the scene of the crime, he was arrested after a while.

Arundatiyar appealed against the sessions court verdict & move High Court.

His lawyer, advocate Aniket Vagal, pleaded before Court that the injuries caused to the woman were not life-threatening & the incident took place because she had refused to marry him, even they were in an intimate relationship for 2 years.

Vagal also cited that Arundatiyar was only 25 years old when he had committed the crime & had little financial means.

He argued that the sentence was grossly disproportionate to the crime, especially when the injuries were not life-threatening, & urged the Court to let Arundatiyar off since he had served 6 years in prison.

However, the High Court refused to show any sympathy to the convict.

The bench said any liberal approach by imposing meagre sentences or taking a lenient view of the crimes against women would be counter-productive in the long run & against societal interests.

But, High Court found life imprisonment to be too harsh & reduced Arundatiyar’s sentence to ten years, of which he needed to serve another 4 years. 

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