Minor girl’s testimony nails mother, lover for killing husband in UP

AGRA: A 30-year-old woman and her lover have been sentenced to life imprisonment for murdering her husband, with the conviction resting heavily on the testimony of the couple's seven-year-old daughter, who witnessed the crime. The court of additional district judge Chetana Chauhan (ADJ-6) in Mainpuri also imposed a fine of 50,000 rupees on each convict on Saturday.
Additional district govt counsel (ADGC) Vipin Kumar Chaturvedi said, "Manoj Kumar, a labourer in his late 30s, was found dead under suspicious circumstances at his home in Akbarpur village under Auchha police station limits on On Dec 2, 2021. His body was found lying on the floor with a sari tied around his neck, initially suggesting suicide. However, postmortem confirmed strangulation, with a fracture in his neck bone indicating murder."
The victim's brother, Vinod, filed a complaint accusing Manoj's wife, Khushboo Savita, and her lover, Abhishek Mishra, 30 — a neighbour — of the murder. During the investigation, police recovered call detail records from Khushboo's phone showing frequent and lengthy conversations between the two, which confirmed suspicions of an affair. Manoj had allegedly become an obstacle in their relationship, leading the duo to plot his murder.
A case was registered under IPC section 302 (murder) and a chargesheet was filed against the accused. "The turning point in the trial was the daughter's brave testimony, in which she told the court that her mother and her lover had killed her father. Her statement, backed by the testimonies of the investigating officer and medical expert, proved crucial in securing the conviction," Chaturvedi said.