Kolkata, 8 July (H.S.) -A sessions court in Kolkata on Tuesday sentenced rickshaw puller Sanjay Sen to death for the brutal murder of retired professor Pran Gobinda Das and his wife Renuka Das, declaring it a rarest of rare case. The court described the act as one of betrayal and extreme cruelty, citing the gruesome nature of the killings.

The double murder took place on July 15, 2015, in a residential complex in Chitpur, North Kolkata. According to the prosecution, the elderly couple was subjected to multiple blows to the face and head, with their faces disfigured beyond recognition.

Additional Sessions Judge Anirban Das, delivering the verdict, noted that the crime involved not only murder but also a severe breach of trust. Sanjay Sen, once a fish seller and later a rickshaw puller, was known to the couple for years and regularly assisted them with visits to the bank, market, and doctor.

The accused exploited the trust that gave him access to the victims' home. This was a premeditated crime, the judge observed.

The court found that Sen tortured the couple for over four hours before fleeing with cash and gold jewellery. The judge remarked that the incident displayed sadistic tendencies that could not be justified by any social or economic circumstance.

Judge Das stated, “In such cases, capital punishment is not just a sentence but a moral statement. It conveys that abuse of trust, violence against the innocent and vulnerable, and the violation of human dignity will never be tolerated in a civilized society.”

This is not the first time Judge Das has delivered a strict sentence in a high-profile case. On August 9, 2024, he had sentenced Sanjay Roy to life imprisonment for the rape and murder of an on-duty female doctor at R.G. Kar Medical College and Hospital. That case is currently being investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) as per a directive from the Calcutta High Court.

Following the death sentence in the Chitpur double murder case, legal experts anticipate that the next step in the judicial process will involve an appeal before the High Court.

Hindusthan Samachar / Satya Prakash Singh