PUNE: A special fast-track court in Pune on Monday awarded the death penalty to Bhimrao Kamble (65), a casual worker, for the kidnapping, rape and murder of a three-year-old girl at Nasrapur village in Bhor taluka on May 1.Special judge SR Salunkhe pronounced the sentence after finding the nature and motive of the crime heinous enough to warrant capital punishment.The court held that the case falls within the “rarest of rare” category as defined by the Supreme Court.Advocate Vipul Dushing, representing the victim, said, “All the parameters required to convict a person and award a death sentence have been fulfilled here. The nature of the crime is extremely barbaric; the accused committed the offence solely to satisfy his lust. Observing this barbaric nature and the fact that the offence was proven beyond a reasonable doubt, the court sentenced him to death, categorising it as a ‘rarest of rare’ case.“ The crime had triggered widespread outrage, with protests erupting on May 1 itself. Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis had ordered a fast-track trial in response, appointing Ajay Misar as special public prosecutor. Police filed the chargesheet within 15 days, listing 82 witnesses.Charges were framed on May 28, followed by an in-camera, day-to-day trial, with final arguments concluding on June 21.The girl had come to her grandmother’s home in Nasrapur for summer vacation. On May 1, the accused lured her to a nearby cowshed on the pretext of showing her a newborn calf, where he raped and killed her before concealing the body.CCTV footage showing Kamble leading the child to the cowshed proved central to the prosecution’s case. Villagers apprehended him and handed him to police.The verdict comes 55 days after the crime.
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(With inputs from ANI)
