The family members of murdered minerals trader Rashmi Ranjan Mohapatra have decided to challenge in higher court the verdict of the Bhubaneswar Additional District Judge Court-II which on Saturday awarded life jail term to gangster Sk Hyder and his two aides and 10 years’ imprisonment to two other accused in the murder.
“I am disappointed. I expected death sentence. I got nothing from the judgment. We will go to the higher court,” said Mohapatra’s wife Satyabhama on Sunday.
“I have lost everything after the brutal murder of my husband. My husband’s soul would rest in peace if the culprits are hanged,” she said.
She wondered why six other accused persons involved in the crime were set free.
“Only five accused were convicted. Why the other six were freed,” an upset Satyabhama asked. The Bhubaneswar ADJ Court-II has on Saturday convicted Hyder and his aides under Section 364 of IPC while exempting them from Section 302.
Notably, eight years after the brutal murder of Mohapatra, the ADJ-II Court sentenced prime accused Hyder and two of his associates, Bhabani Shankar and Sarat Sahoo, to life imprisonment and awarded 10 years’ imprisonment to two other accused, Ganapati Ray and Jajati, while acquitting six persons due to lack of evidence in the sensational case.