In a major intervention, the Odisha High Court has set aside the death penalty given to a person accused of multiple murders by a Nabrangpur court and ordered a retrial.
Sources said, one Sukru Majhi, who had killed four of his relatives in July 2011 in Bhakatguda near Papadahandi in Nabrangpur district, was convicted and awarded death penalty by the Nabrangpur District and Sessions court in May this year.
Majhi had surrendered to the police after committing the crime and had made confessions.However, the High Court noted that the fact that Majhi was suffering from mental illness had been overlooked by the lower court during the trial.
Although Majhi’s wife and mother had clearly stated that he was mentally unstable, this factor was not taken into consideration by the lower court while awarding the death penalty, a lapse that the High Court did not approve of.
The Nabrangpur court has been directed to conduct and complete a retrial of the case within three months.Recently, the High Court had also quashed an order of a Jharsuguda court which had convicted a person of rape and murder and awarded him death penalty and ordered his immediate release.