High Court acquits murder accused

CUTTACK: The Orissa high court on Friday acquitted Minaketan Seth, who was awarded death sentence by a lower court in Jharsuguda, for allegedly raping and murdering a minor girl in 2009.
A division bench of Justices P Mohanty and D Dash acquitted Seth for lack of adequate evidence. "The court observed that Seth was given death penalty on the basis of extra-judicial confessions as there are no eyewitnesses to the crime.These evidences are not enough to establish charges against him and make him liable for death penalty," said counsel of the petitioner B K Ragada.
The court also observed that the case is not a rarest of the rare kind in which death sentence could be awarded. The court found that there are not enough strong evidences against Seth, 26, to prove that he committed the crime. "The high court has set aside the lower court verdict and acquitted Seth from the charges of rape and murder," added Ragada.
The youth was awarded death penalty on March 19 by additional sessions judge of Jharsuguda Shyam Sundar Mishra for allegedly raping and murdering a minor girl. Challenging the lower court order, Seth moved the high court in April seeking relief. The petitioner alleged that trial in the lower court was not fair and sought to quash it.
The incident took place in October 2009. It was alleged that a 14-year-old girl in Khandeikela village was returning home after giving lunch to her father when Seth intercepted her, forcibly took her to a secluded place and tried to rape her. But when he was not successful, he allegedly strangulated the girl to death and then raped her. Police arrested Seth on the basis of statements given by few villagers that he had confessed to his crime, said Ragada.