Pronouncing the quantum of punishment in the Esther Anuhya rape and murder case, judge Vrushali Joshi said the accused shall be hanged by his neck till he is dead. According to the judge, Sanap, at 29, was not too young and it could not be a mitigating circumstance as he was fully aware of consequences of the act, the court said, dealing with the defence that his family depended on him so he should be spared the noose.
After coming out of court, Sanap broke down and while speaking to the media said, “I am innocent and being falsely implicated in the case and I never expected that I would be given the death sentence.” When asked if he met his daughter after the incident, he replied in the negative. He said that his mother wanted him to meet his daughter, but he did not want her to come to jail or court and hence did not meet her.
S. Jonathan Surendra Prasad, father of Esther, who was in Machilipatnam welcomed the verdict. He said that the death penalty to Sanap would instill fear among those who think of attempting such heinous crimes against women, in the future. He also thanked the people who expressed solidarity with his daughter by raising their voice against the incident and said he felt “indebted” towards the court, police and media persons who highlighted the issue.
Arun Kumar, Esther’s uncle said, “We are satisfied that the court has awarded the death sentence to the convict. We were pursuing this case for society because for us all this is just a waste of time now, because we will not get our daughter back. But we wanted the court to give a harsh punishment to the culprit so that it sends out a strong message to society and nobody thinks of committing such crimes in the future.”
Special public prosecutor Raja Thakre expressed satisfaction on the verdict and said that this would definitely send a strong message to likeminded people and prevent them from committing similar crimes. Defence lawyer Prakash Salsingikar said the judgment was bad and he would file an appeal.
