LUCKNOW: A court in Kushinagar awarded the death penalty to Jitendra Kushwaha (35) for the murder of his wife and three young sons in 2021, holding that the case falls under the “rarest of rare” category and warrants capital punishment.Additional District and Sessions Judge Parmeshwar Prasad convicted Jitendra Kushwaha, a resident of Gurmiya Gopal Tola in Kudwa Dilip Nagar village under Kasya police station limits, for the murders of his wife, Leelawati (31), and their three sons, Akash (8), Vikas (6) and Rinku (4). Apart from awarding the death sentence, the court imposed a fine of Rs 2.01 lakh on the convict.The murders took place on the night of August 25, 2021. The following morning, Leelawati’s father, Ramjeet Kushwaha, lodged an FIR alleging that Jitendra had slit the throats of his sleeping wife and children with a sharp-edged weapon. He further alleged that after committing the murders, Jitendra attempted to take his own life by consuming poison.The incident came to light after villagers raised an alarm and informed family members. When Ramjeet reached the house, he found it locked from the inside. Police broke open the door and recovered the bodies of the four victims. Jitendra, who was found alive after the alleged suicide attempt, was admitted to hospital under police supervision. After recovering, he was arrested and sent to jail.“Jitendra had sought money from his wife to buy alcohol. After she refused, an argument broke out between the couple. Witnesses stated that he later returned home in an intoxicated condition and attacked his family while they were asleep,” said Keshav Kumar, SP, Kushinagar.Testimonies from family members, including the convict’s father and brother, played a crucial role in the case.Witnesses told the court that Leelawati had long opposed Jitendra’s drinking habit and that family members had repeatedly urged him to give up alcohol. They also said he had previously assaulted his elderly parents and had begun living separately from them.The prosecution examined 12 witnesses and relied on both oral and documentary evidence. Finding the evidence sufficient to establish guilt beyond reasonable doubt, the court held Jitendra responsible for the murders and his subsequent suicide attempt.The Superintendent of District Jail, Deoria, reported that Kushwaha had remained in custody since August 31, 2021. During his time in prison, he maintained satisfactory conduct, worked as a mason, was never punished for any jail offence and behaved normally with fellow inmates and prison staff.Police said his first marriage ended in divorce following repeated allegations of domestic violence. He later married Leelawati, with whom he had three sons. The report also included statements from villagers alleging that Kushwaha was responsible for killing his wife and children.Why the court called it ‘rarest of rare’The judge observed that the murders were carried out with a sharp-edged vegetable-cutting sickle while the victims were asleep inside their home. Three of the victims were children aged eight, six and four. The court noted that the wife and children were entirely dependent on the accused for protection. It also observed that the crime appeared to have been premeditated, as the accused had brought the family home from his in-laws’ house a day earlier. Considering the brutality of the crime and the circumstances surrounding it, the court held that life imprisonment would be inadequate.
