The sessions court has sentenced a butcher to life imprisonment for killing a tempo driver over a dispute. The incident occurred on September 21, 2018, during a trip to Alibagh.
Details of case
As per the prosecution’s case, Dharma and Bilal were friends, with Dharma transporting cattle for Bilal’s slaughtering business. Dharma, Bilal, and their friend Salim Qureshi were en route to Alibagh to pick up buffaloes. However, due to the Ganpati visarjan procession, they redirected to Khopoli on Bilal’s instructions.
Later, Bilal asked Dharma to transport bullocks instead of buffaloes in the tempo. A disagreement ensued, resulting in Bilal snatching Dharma’s mobile and tempo keys. Although Bilal eventually returned the keys, he retained Dharma’s mobile, citing losses incurred due to Dharma’s refusal to carry bulls. On September 30, Dharma and his friends approached Bilal to retrieve the mobile and a confrontation occurred, leading to Bilal stabbing Dharma four times, ultimately causing his death.
Bilal, accompanied by two friends, Rahamtulla Shaikh and Aslam Shaikh, was promptly arrested by the police on the same day. The prosecution’s case relied heavily on the testimony of three eyewitnesses, who were with Dharma. They identified Bilal and recounted the incident, detailing the stabbing.
In their defence, Bilal’s legal team contested the case, arguing that Dharma already possessed a mobile at the time of the incident and the weapon used for the murder had yet not been recovered.
Court's observations
The court said, “It needs to be reminded that the aspect of mobile is merely incidental and cannot be the core issue of the case. Even if there is no investigation and evidence concerning the mobile of the deceased, that would not hamper the otherwise case of the prosecution.” The court held Bilal guilty of murder but acquitted two of his accomplices from the charges of instigation.
