Abolish Death Penalty India: Hyderabad

Tuesday, June 9, 2026

Telangana: Man, sister awarded death for patricide

Updated on: 09 Jun 2026, 6:11 am

HYDERABAD: In a rare instance of a woman being awarded capital punishment, a Medchal-Malkajgiri district court on Monday sentenced a brother and sister to death for murdering their father, dismembering his body and concealing the remains in plastic buckets. Their mother was sentenced to life imprisonment for her role in the conspiracy and cover-up. The court held that the crime fell within the “rarest of rare” category.

Representative image

Medchal-Malkajgiri principal district and sessions judge V Bala Bhaskar Rao pronounced the sentence. The convicts were identified as 47-year-old Kishan Suthar alias Rahul (A1), his 65-year-old mother Ganga Bai (A2), and his 36-year-old sister Prapulla alias Pappi (A3). According to the prosecution, the accused conspired to murder Maruthi Suthar, a retired Railway employee. Evidence presented during the trial showed that they were financially dependent on the deceased, who was receiving a pension after retirement.

The court found that the accused had administered poisonous datura alkaloids to the victim, resulting in his death. During the trial, it emerged that they had been mixing datura extract into his food for several days to test its effects. To conceal the crime, they dismembered the body and stored the remains in six plastic buckets inside their residence.

The crime came to light after neighbours noticed a foul smell from the house and alerted authorities. Police recovered the body parts and gathered forensic and circumstantial evidence linking the accused to the offence. After examining aggravating and mitigating circumstances, the court concluded that Kishan Suthar and Prapulla deserved the maximum punishment under law. They were sentenced to death and fined Rs 10,000 each for the murder.

Considering her age and other mitigating factors, the court sentenced Ganga Bai to rigorous imprisonment for life and imposed a fine of `10,000. All three convicts were also awarded additional prison terms for criminal conspiracy and destruction of evidence, with the sentences directed to run concurrently.

Source: https://www.newindianexpress.com/states/telangana/2026/Jun/09/telangana-man-sister-awarded-death-for-patricide

Saturday, December 22, 2018

Hyderabad blast case: Yasin Bhatkal, four others get death sentence by NIA court

By Express Web Desk |New Delhi |Updated: December 19, 2016 6:41:07 pm

Eighteen people were killed in the twin blast at Dilsukhnagar in Hyderabad on February 21, 2013.

Yasin Bhatkal was convicted by the NIA court on December 13.

A special NIA court in Hyderabad on Monday sentenced Indian Mujahideen co-founder Yasin Bhatkal and four others to death in the 2013 Dilsukhnagar blast case. Bhatkal, Zia-ur-Rehman alias Waqas, Asadullah Akhtar alias Haddi, Tahaseen Akhtar and Aijaz Sheikh, and IM founder Riyaz Bhatkal, the prime accused in the case, who is absconding, were convicted by the NIA court in Cherlapally Central Prison on December 13. On November 7, the final arguments had concluded in the case before the NIA special court. Since IM founder Riyaz Bhatkal, the prime accused in the case, is absconding, the trial was split up against him. The court convicted Yasin Bhatkal and others under various sections of Indian Penal Code, Arms Act, Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). The NIA special court, after hearing the defence and prosecution’s arguments, pronounced the quantum of sentence.

According to NIA, Riyaz Bhatkal arranged for explosive substances and directed Asadullah Akhtar and Zia-ur-Rahman at Mangalore to receive the same. After receiving the explosive materials and the money sent by Riyaz through hawala and money transfer channels, Asadullah Akhtar and Waqas reached Hyderabad and joined Tahseen Akhtar, who was already hiding there, it had said. Together they prepared two IEDs after procuring the other required materials as well as two cycles for mounting the IEDs from Hyderabad, the agency had said. After preparation of the IEDs on February 21, 2013, the accused mounted two bombs on two bicycles. They had planted them in two separate places in Dilsukhnagar which resulted in powerful explosions, it had said. Eighteen people were killed in the twin blast. The first bomb went off at Anand Tiffins, located opposite Konark Theatre while the second bomb exploded between Venkatadri Theatre and Dilsukhnagar Bus Stand.

Source: https://indianexpress.com/article/india/hyderabad-blast-case-yasin-bhatkal-four-others-get-death-sentence-by-nia-court/ (Accessed 22 December 2018)

The Death Penalty Scenario in India

India is one of 193 countries that retains the death penalty. Some judges have delivered landmark verdicts upholding the rights of death row prisoners, while debates continue advocating abolition or reform of sentencing policies. The Indian government remains committed to retention, asserting executions occur only in “rarest of rare” cases. The death penalty applies to crimes including murder, kidnapping, terrorism, desertion, inducement to suicide of a minor or mentally-retarded person, and in certain cases of rape. Outrage over child rape and murder has intensified these discussions. After an unofficial eight-year moratorium, the government executed Ajmal Kasab (Mumbai attacks) in 2012 and Afzal Guru (Parliament attack) in 2013, both covertly and immediately after mercy petitions were rejected. Prior to this, Dhananjoy Chatterjee was executed in 2004 after 13 years on death row. Following these, many mercy petitions have been rejected, creating fear among death row convicts. Courts continue to hand down death sentences at an increasing rate. Empirical studies highlight the plight of death row prisoners. The India Exclusion Report 2017-18 found fair trial rights largely denied, with convicts often marginalized by caste, religion, poverty, and education. The Death Penalty Research Project (2015) documented socio-economic profiles and experiences of death row prisoners. Dr. Reena Mary George’s studies (2014, 2009) emphasized poverty, social exclusion, and dignity as central to death row experiences, and examined the human rights impact of the penalty. According to the National Crime Records Bureau 2015, 101 prisoners were on death row, with many sentences commuted to life. The “rarest of rare” doctrine introduced by the Supreme Court in the 1980s has not substantially limited death sentences, which have increased over the decades. Justice Joseph (2018) reaffirmed the Bachan Singh judgment but urged restriction of the death penalty to only those cases meeting its criteria. While updating the blog and conducting my own empirical studies, I observed the heinous nature of the crimes that were committed and thought about the families, about their loss, about the victims who for no fault of their own died. If I lost my relative or a dear friend, would I still oppose death penalty and would I still advocate to abolish the death sentence? Having worked in the criminal justice system and also having the seen the other side, where often it is the marginalized, vulnerable and oppressed who are on death row makes me want to advocate for abolition of this punishment. Victims should definitely get justice for their loss, for their pain. No one should escape the rule of law. As long as humanity exists; crime will exist. Should we not re-consider our sentencing policies? Reena Mary George