Death for 7 in love-triangle murder case

Kolkata: Calling it a rarest of rare case, a Chinsurah fast track court sentenced seven persons to death on Thursday in a 2020 murder case. On Oct 11 that year, the criminals killed 23-year-old Bishnu Mal, and dismembered his body into six pieces. The investigation revealed that the murder was a result of a love triangle.What made judge Shibshankar Ghosh call it a rare case were the photos of the dismemberment that the killers clicked on a mobile phone. They then packed the body parts and dumped them in various places in Sheoraphuli and Baidyabati, Hooghly."The main accused, Bishal Das, and his associates, Ramkrishna Mondal, Raj Kumar Pramanick, Vinod Das, Ratan Bepari, Biplab Biswas, and Rathin Singha, were all convicted for the death sentence under IPC sections 302 and 120B, pertaining to murder and criminal conspiracy. Another accused, Mantu Ghosh, was convicted for seven years for trying to hide the body," said special prosecutor Bivas Chatterjee.On Monday, the court found them guilty of the murder. Das and his associates abducted the victim on a motorcycle from in front of his house. That night, they killed Mal in a house in the Champdani area. During the investigation, the police arrested all the criminals except Bishal. The arrested persons led the police to the dumping spots. However, Mal's head was not found until Bishal was captured. About a month after the murder, he was apprehended in a shooting incident in Jibantala in South 24 Parganas. He was taken into custody by the Chandernagore police. After questioning him, the plastic-wrapped head was recovered from a canal in Baidyabati.Police said Mal loved a girl and was scheduled to marry her within one week before the murder. The girl's witness in the case proved to be the most important for the conviction, said Chatterjee. According to the police chargesheet, which was repeatedly highlighted by the court, Bishal severed the head of Mal's dead body and then, out of severe anger, kicked the body with force. Co-accused Kala then took out a chopper and handed it to Mal, who severed the head.The chargesheet was filed on January 21, 2021, under IPC sections pertaining to murder, criminal conspiracy, and kidnapping against nine persons. One of the accused turned approver and was eventually acquitted during the course of the trial. "The victim's parents and his sister used to attend the trials with a ‘We Want Justice' poster with them. On Thursday, after the verdict, they honoured the probe team and the prosecuting on the main road," said Chatterjee.Amit Kumar Javalgi, CP Chandernagore and PP Bibhas Chatterjee also addressed the media hailing the verdict as a historic one. "The accused tried to destroy every evidence and even threatened the witnesses. "But Uttam Mohanti,the IO played an important role.He would be given a reward," said Javalgi.