Allahabad High Court Commutes Death Sentence in Child Rape-Murder Case to 25 Years Jail Without Remission

The Allahabad High Court has commuted the death sentence awarded to a man for raping and murdering his minor cousin, replacing it with life imprisonment for 25 years without remission.

The trial court had earlier found him guilty under Sections 302 and 376AB of the IPC and Section 6 of the POCSO Act. While upholding the conviction, the High Court ruled that the case did not meet the threshold of being “incorrigible” or a “menace to society” to justify capital punishment.

The Court acknowledged the gravity of the offence but cited mitigating factors to reduce the sentence.

[Bantu @ Shiv Shankar v State of U.P.]