Lucknow: A Hardoi court has sentenced three brothers to life imprisonment for murdering their sister-in-law over a dispute involving Rs 1,000 nearly a decade ago.Additional district judge Kusum Lata convicted Pappu (44), Neeraj (45) and Chhotu alias Dheeraj (30) under Section 302 (murder) of the IPC and sentenced them to life imprisonment. The court also imposed a fine of Rs 13,000 on each convict.The case dates back to Nov 2, 2016, when Reshma (45) was beaten to death with sticks and wooden clubs in Mandalahiya village under Kachhauna police station limits in Hardoi.According to the prosecution, led by additional district government counsel Sanjeev Kumar Singh, Reshma’s husband Shriram lodged an FIR on the day of the incident, alleging that his brothers Pappu, Neeraj and Dheeraj, along with their father Rampal and a nephew, had come to his house demanding repayment of Rs 1,000 they had earlier lent him.When Shriram sought 10 more days to return the money, an argument broke out. Hearing the commotion, Reshma came out of the house, following which the accused allegedly assaulted her with sticks and wooden clubs. She sustained grievous injuries and died on the spot.Police arrested the accused on Nov 3, 2016, and filed a chargesheet later that month.During the trial, one of the accused was found to be a juvenile and his case was separated. Rampal, the deceased’s father-in-law, died during the pendency of the trial.The prosecution faced a setback when Shriram, the complainant and husband of the deceased, turned hostile and retracted his earlier statements in court.However, the case was sustained through the testimony of the couple’s son, Mohit (26), who witnessed the attack and supported the prosecution’s version.“Despite the husband turning hostile, the prosecution successfully established the case through the eyewitness account of the victim’s son, supported by medical and forensic evidence,” Singh said.The prosecution also relied on the post-mortem report and forensic science laboratory findings to corroborate the circumstances of Reshma’s death.In all, six witnesses were examined and 16 documentary exhibits were produced during the trial.After considering the evidence and hearing both sides, the court held the three accused guilty and awarded them life imprisonment.
