Srinagar- A court in Srinagar on Monday convicted a man for throwing acid on a woman at Hawal on 1 February 2022.The court of Principal Sessions Judge Srinagar Jawad Ahmed on March 20, 2022 had framed charges against two adult accused— Sajid Altaf Sheikh of Buchwara Dalgate and Mohammad Saleem Kumar of Dalgate (AP Padshhi Bagh) Srinagar who “provided acid used in the attack”.
After about two years of trial, the court found Sajid Altaf Sheikh guilty for commission of offence under section 326-A IPC (Voluntarily causing grievous hurt by use of acid, etc). However, Kumar has been acquitted of grave charges under 326-A which provides for minimum ten years of jail which may extend to life imprisonment and with fine. He has been convicted for commission of offence under section 336 IPC (whoever does any act so rashly or negligently as to endanger human life or the personal safety of others.” The court is likely to pronounce the quantum of punishment this week.
Pertinently, the court had framed the charges against the duo, 24 days after police filed nearly 1000-page charge-sheet for offences under 326-A and 120-B (criminal conspiracy to commit an offence) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
In all three persons had been named in the case and two chargesheets were filed, one against two adult accused and one against a minor before the Juvenile Justice Board.
The crime had sent shock waves on the evening of February 1, 2022 when the main accused accompanied by the juvenile (name withheld) threw acid on the 24-year-old woman after she allegedly rejected his marriage proposal.
Soon after the attack, police had constituted a special investigation team headed by SP North Raja Zuhaib (JKPS) with Yasir Parrey (SDPO) Khanyar, SHOs of police stations Safakadal, Nowhatta besides SHO of Srinagar Women’s Police station as its members to investigate the case (FIR No 08/2022) under section 326-A and 120-B IPC).