Tandoor murder: SC commutes death sentence to life

The Supreme Court Tuesday commuted to life imprisonment the death sentence awarded to former Youth Congress leader Sushil Sharma for killing his wife and attempting to dispose off her body in a tandoor (clay oven).

An apex court bench of Chief Justice P. Sathasivam, Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai and Justice Ranjan Gogoi said the prosecution had proven the guilt of the accused beyond reasonable doubt.

The court recounted the sequence of events leading to the murder of Naina Sahni and the attempt to dispose off her body by burning it in a tandoor of the Bagiya restaurant in a then government-owned hotel. The chain of events would indicate that the accused and the accused alone had committed the brutal murder, the court said.

"It is not a crime against society, but it is a crime committed by the accused due to strained personal relationship with his wife," said Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai, pronouncing the judgment on behalf of the bench. The court further said this was a mitigating factor for commuting the death sentence to life imprisonment.

Sharma's life imprisonment would be for the rest of the life, the court said, adding it would be subject to the powers of the appropriate authority to grant remission in accordance with the law.