RG Kar case judge announces death penalty for Chitpur murder convict

Judge Anirban Das of the Sealdah court has sentenced Sanjay Sen alias Bappa to death for the brutal murder of an elderly couple in Chitpur ten years ago. This verdict stands in contrast to a previous high-profile case (RG Kar Junior Doctor Rape and Murder Case) handled by the same judge, where a rape and murder case was not deemed 'rarest of the rare' and resulted in a life imprisonment sentence. The judge's decision to hand down the death penalty in this instance underscores the extreme nature of the crime, which he explicitly categorized as 'rarest of the rare.'

The tragic incident dates back to July 2015 when Prangovind Das and his wife Renuka Das, both in their seventies, were found murdered in their residential flat in Chitpur. The elderly couple, whose daughter resides in America, lived alone and had developed a close relationship with the accused, Sanjay Sen, treating him like their own child. They had even facilitated Sanjay's marriage to Purnima, a young woman who lived with them to provide care.

The couple relied heavily on Sanjay for daily chores, including going to the market and other outdoor tasks. Their generosity extended to providing him financial assistance on multiple occasions, even purchasing the rickshaw he drove for his livelihood. This trusting relationship makes the subsequent betrayal and crime all the more shocking and heinous.

The grim discovery was made in July 2015 when the couple's maid, Purnima, arrived at the flat the day after the murders and found them missing. A foul smell later prompted neighbors to alert the police. Upon investigation, police recovered the bodies of Prangovind Das and Renuka Das from two separate rooms within the flat. A significant amount of cash, precisely 1 lakh 26 thousand rupees, and approximately 50 bhari of gold were also found to be missing from the house, indicating robbery as a motive. The subsequent investigation revealed that the couple had been brutally murdered by being struck with an iron rod.

Sanjay Sen disappeared immediately after the incident. However, the police investigation quickly pointed towards him. It was discovered that on the morning of the murders, Sanjay had driven the householder home in a rickshaw and later returned to the flat. Two days after the crime, the accused was apprehended from his ancestral home in Nandigram, Purba Medinipur. Further police work led to the recovery of the murder weapon, an iron rod, and clothes from a pond in Chitpur. The stolen cash and gold were also recovered, having been buried underground in Nandigram.

After nearly a decade since the double murder, the Sealdah court, under the same judge Anirban Das, has finally delivered the capital punishment to Sanjay Sen. The prosecuting team, led by investigating officer Jagabandhu Gharai and public prosecutor Sandeep Bhattacharya, presented comprehensive evidence, including various documents and photographs, which ultimately led to the court's stringent verdict in this chilling case.