New Delhi, Feb 6: The Delhi high court on Friday turned down the proesecution's plea for death sentence to Uttar Pradesh politician DP Yadav's son Vikas Yadav and two others convicted in the Nitish Katara murder case.
The court gave an enhanced 25 years life imprisonment to both Vikas and his cousin Vishal Yadav for abducting and killing Katara.
Both Vikas and Vishal were also fined Rs 50 lakh each. The third convict Sukhdev Pehelwan was sentenced to 20 years in jail.
The high court also awarded additional 5 year-jail term to all three convicts for destruction of evidence in the case.
A special bench of justices Gita Mittal and and JR Midha delivered the verdict in the 13-year-old case after concluding hearing arguments on sentence against the convicts in December 8 last year.
Reacting to the court's verdict, victim's mother Neelam Katara said, "We are happy that the court has awarded them an enhanced sentence. After reading the judgment we will approach the Supreme Court appealing that they should be given death penalty."
Vikas, his cousin Vishal Yadav and Sukhdev Pehelwan are serving life term for abducting and killing Katara, a business executive and the son of an IAS officer, on the night of February 16-17, 2002, as they opposed the victim's affair with Bharti, daughter of DP Yadav.
The high court had on April 2, 2014, upheld the verdict of the lower court in the case by describing the offence as "honour killing" stemming from a "deeply-entrenched belief" in caste system.
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