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No Death Penalty, But Jail For 40 Years Sans Remission: HC On Man Who Stabbed Former Lover 45 Times
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The court found that a standard life sentence, which could allow for remission after 14 years, would be grossly disproportionate to the gravity of the crime
The Calcutta High Court has commuted the death sentence of a 24-year-old man convicted for the brutal murder of his former lover to life imprisonment without remission for 40 years.
A division bench of Justices Debangsu Basak and Md. Shabbar Rashidi upheld the conviction of Susanta Chowdhury, who was found guilty by a fast-track court of murdering a 19-year-old college student in Behrampore, Murshidabad, in broad daylight on May 2, 2022. The trial court had sentenced him to death.
The accused, enraged after the victim ended their relationship and began seeing another person, planned the crime meticulously. He purchased a knife and a toy gun from an online store and used the latter to deter bystanders during the attack. The murder took place outside the victim's rented accommodation and was captured on video by a journalist, who was among the eyewitnesses.
During the trial, 34 witnesses were examined, including police officers, forensic experts, family members, and acquaintances of the victim. The post-mortem revealed 45 stab wounds, several of which were classified as defensive injuries. The CCTV footage and video recording from a mobile phone, accompanied by valid electronic evidence certificates, were accepted by the court. Biological evidence also confirmed the presence of the victim's blood on the knife, clothes, and shoes of the accused.
The high court, while affirming the conviction, reconsidered the sentence. Referring to landmark decisions including Bachan Singh, Machi Singh, Santosh Bariyar, and Swamy Shraddananda, the court ruled that while the crime was undoubtedly heinous, it did not fall into the 'rarest of rare' category warranting the death penalty.
The bench took note of mitigating factors, particularly the convict's age — 21 at the time of the offence — absence of a prior criminal record, and psychological assessments indicating the possibility of reformation. 'There is no material before us to suggest that the appellant is beyond reformation," the court observed, adding that 'death penalty must be imposed only when life imprisonment is unquestionably inadequate."
However, the court found that a standard life sentence, which could allow for remission after 14 years, would be grossly disproportionate to the gravity of the crime. Instead, it imposed a sentence of life imprisonment without the possibility of remission for 40 years from the date of arrest, along with a fine of Rs 50,000. Failure to pay the fine would result in an additional five years of rigorous imprisonment.
The court also upheld the conviction and sentence under Section 28 of the Arms Act for the use of an imitation firearm.
First Published:
June 13, 2025, 19:16 IST
