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By:

Quaid Najmi

4 January 2025 at 3:26:24 pm

Three deaths, three lifers

Landmark verdict in 60 days as pune court terms crime ‘rarest of rare’; calls ‘brutal’, ‘inhuman’ and ‘barbaric’ Mumbai: In a milestone verdict, a Pune Special Fast Track Court handed triple death and triple life sentences to a 65-year old man for the rape-cum-murder of a three-years and two-months old girl, within barely 60 days of the crime, terming the case as falling in the ‘rarest of rare’ category, on Monday. Special Judge S. R. Salunkhe slapped the verdicts “to be hanged till death”...

Three deaths, three lifers

Landmark verdict in 60 days as pune court terms crime ‘rarest of rare’; calls ‘brutal’, ‘inhuman’ and ‘barbaric’ Mumbai: In a milestone verdict, a Pune Special Fast Track Court handed triple death and triple life sentences to a 65-year old man for the rape-cum-murder of a three-years and two-months old girl, within barely 60 days of the crime, terming the case as falling in the ‘rarest of rare’ category, on Monday. Special Judge S. R. Salunkhe slapped the verdicts “to be hanged till death” and “life imprisonment” for each of the three main charges – rape, murder, kidnapping besides provisions of the Prevention of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, terming the acts of the convict, Bhimrao Prabhakar Kamble, as “brutal, inhuman and barbaric”. “The Special Court has awarded three life-terms and three death sentences for all the main charges. This is an unprecedented and historical verdict,” an elated Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) Ajay S. Misar told ‘The Perfect Voice’ shortly after the ruling. The precedent-setting ruling came before a jam-packed courtroom where Kamble stood with his head down in the witness box, the family members of the victim’s family, along with SPP Misar, the Pune Police Investigating Officer Inspector Vijaymala Pawar, and Pune (Rural) Superintendent of Police Sandeep Singh Gill besides the family’s lawyer Vipul Dushing remaining present. Diabolical Crime The Special Judge observed that the diabolical crime – for which Kamble was convicted on June 25 - did not just shock the judicial conscience but also shook public ethics, citing similar bestial incidents in Kathua (Jammu & Kashmir, 2018) and Unnao (Uttar Pradesh, 2017) that had sparked similar public outrage – as the victim’s family members broke down in the courtroom today. According to the police and prosecution, the victim girl, who was visiting her grandmother, was accosted by Kamble, later raped and murdered on the afternoon of May 1 at Nasrapur village in Bhor taluka of Pune district. “The offences relate to the commission of serious crimes like murder and rape by an accused with a prior record and a substantial history of serious assault. The offence was committed outrageously and involved inhuman treatment and torture of the victim. The victim was an innocent, helpless child. The murder was committed to satisfy lust, which evidences total depravity. It was a cold-blooded murder without provocation. The crime was committed so brutally that it shocks not only the judicial conscience but even the conscience of society,” the Special Judge Salunkhe said. Aggravating Factor Justifying the capital punishments, the Special Court said the only circumstance that could be posed was the age of the accused (65 years), and opined that it was not a mitigating but rather an aggravating factor, while relying on solid and circumstantial evidence like CCTV footage, DNA profiling, the statements of 55 witnesses, including a child, crime scene panchnama, identification parade records, articles seized during the probe, chemical analysis and other scientific reports, produced during the trial, SPP Misar said six crucial CCTV footage reconstructed the sequences of events, it showed Kamble taking the victim towards the crime scene at 3.12 pm that afternoon and returning alone at 3.51 pm, establishing she was in his custody for 39 minutes. It was during that period he sexually assaulted the victim, committed an unnatural sexual act, killed her and then concealed her body to mislead the investigators. Medical Reports The prosecution team of SPP Misar and Prathamesh Shingane also relied on the medical and autopsy reports, the detailed analysis of the injuries that corroborated its reconstruction of the crime and other circumstantial evidence indicated that the crime was pre-planned by Kamble. The Special Court noted that the prosecution proved both the last seen theory and the chain of evidence beyond a reasonable doubt, that Kamble was the ‘last person seen with the victim’ while she was alive, and there was no one else in her company before her death, with the entire set of circumstantial evidence unbroken and complete, pointing to his guilt. Strongly seeking the capital punishment SPP Misar cited 12 Supreme Court judgements while the family’s lawyer Dughing said: “The victim was of a very tender age, 38 months old while Kamble was 65 years. The nature of the crime is extremely barbaric and committed solely to satisfy his lust.” They rubbished Kamble’s statement to the court as “totally false”, demolished by the probe, scientific DNA profiling, medical records, forensic reports and circumstantial evidence, to decisively nail him.

US Vice President JD Vance, his family arrive in Delhi

  • PTI
  • Apr 21, 2025
  • 2 min read


NEW DELHI: US Vice President J D Vance arrived here on Monday on a four-day visit to India against the backdrop of ongoing negotiations for a bilateral trade agreement between the two strategic partners to address a variety of issues, including tariff and market access.


Vance is accompanied by his Indian-origin wife Usha Chilukuri and their three children Ewan, Vivek, Mirabel and a delegation of senior US government officials.


The US Vice President and the Second Lady were received at the Palam air base by Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw.


The American leader was also accorded a ceremonial welcome on his arrival.

In the evening, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will host a dinner for the Vances after holding wide-ranging talks with the US Vice President.


External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, NSA Ajit Doval, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri and Indian ambassador to US Vinay Mohan Kwatra are expected to be part of the Indian team to be led by PM Modi at the talks.


The focus of the meeting is likely to be on early finalisation of the proposed bilateral trade pact as well as ways to boost overall trajectory of ties between the two countries.


Besides Delhi, Vance and his family will travel to Jaipur and Agra.

Vance's first visit to India comes weeks after US President Donald Trump imposed and then paused a sweeping tariff regime against around 60 countries, including India.


New Delhi and Washington are now holding negotiations to seal a bilateral trade agreement that is expected to address a variety of issues, including tariff and market access.


Vance and his family are scheduled to leave for Jaipur on Monday night.

In Delhi, the US Vice President and his family are staying at the ITC Maurya Sheraton hotel.


On April 22, the Vances will visit a number of historical sites in Jaipur, including the Amer Fort, also known as Amber Fort. The fort is a UNESCO world heritage site.


In the afternoon, the US Vice President is scheduled to address a gathering at the Rajasthan International Centre in Jaipur.


Vance is expected to delved into broader aspects of India-US relations under the Donald Trump administration during his speech that is expected to be attended by diplomats, foreign policy experts, Indian government officials and academia.


The US Vice President and his family will travel to Agra on the morning of April 23, people familiar with the matter said.


In Agra, they will visit the Taj Mahal and Shilpgram which is an open air emporium showcasing various Indian artefacts, they said.


After concluding their visit to Agra, the Vances will return to Jaipur on the second half of April 23.


The US Vice President and his family will depart for the US from Jaipur on April 24, according to the people cited above.

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