Lucknow, February 25 A local court has sentenced a man to life imprisonment for murdering his friend by setting him on fire due to an old grudge, court officials said on Wednesday.
According to the prosecution, the case was registered at the Gudamba police station on July 12, 2012, based on a complaint filed by Anurag Tiwari.
The complainant stated that his son, Ashutosh Tiwari, who worked at the National Book Depot and was seeking admission to a BA course, had left home on the morning of July 11 but did not return. After a search, the police were informed.
During the investigation, the police found that the deceased was last seen with his friend Deepak Kumar in the evening of his disappearance.
Upon questioning, Deepak Kumar confessed to taking the victim to his native village in Sidhauli, claiming that he was doing it to facilitate his admission. He then mixed sleeping pills in liquor and made him consume it. After the victim fell unconscious, the accused hit him on the head with a stick and then poured kerosene on him and set him on fire, causing his death.
The body was later recovered from the courtyard of Kumar's house in his village, where it had been buried, at the instance of the accused.
During interrogation, Deepak Kumar said he harbored a grudge against Ashutosh because he had been beaten up by him and his father after giving a love letter to the victim's sister.
Holding onto this grudge, he befriended the victim again before killing him, the prosecution said.
Additional District Government Counsel Vikas Singh said that Additional Sessions Judge Rohit Singh on Tuesday convicted Deepak Kumar and awarded him life imprisonment along with a fine of Rs 6.5 lakh.
The court directed that half of the fine amount be paid to the legal heir of the deceased after proper identification or to his father, in accordance with the law.
Another accused involved in the case was earlier declared a juvenile and his case was sent to the Juvenile Justice Board, Singh added.