Madras High Court Upholds Life Sentence of Parents in Child Murder Case

The Madras High Court (Madurai Bench) upheld the life sentence of parents convicted for administering pesticide to their 9-year-old daughter suffering from mental illness.

A Division Bench of Justices GK Ilanthiraiyan and R Poornima ruled that personal hardship cannot justify taking a life. The Court emphasised that parents have a bounden duty to care for their child, regardless of mental or physical disability.

Rejecting arguments on hostile witnesses and a negative viscera report, the Court noted that prolonged medical treatment can eliminate traces of poison. Medical records and purchase evidence supported the prosecution's case.

The Bench confirmed conviction under Sections 302 and 342 IPC, stressing that no one can take the law into their own hands.

[Muneeswaran v. State]