Borate,Kokate found guilty

On November 1,2007,Jyotikumari was raped and strangulated by Borate and Kokate. Borate,the cab driver with the BPO,had picked her up from the office around 10 pm. Kokate was also in the cab. Investigations revealed that as she was talking on phone,she did not realise where she was being taken. Her phone was disconnected and was unreachable after that. Her body was found the next day near Gahunje village.

Jyotikumari,who hailed from Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh,was a science graduate from the University of Pune and had joined the call centre as an associate in December 2006. She stayed with her sister and brother-in-law in Panchavati,Pashan. Her brother-in-law had lodged a missing complaint with the Chatuhshrungi police station the next day. The accused were arrested on November 4. A “fake” defence lawyer who had to be replaced,besides adjournments for several reasons,had delayed the trial. After the court held two guilty of the charges and asked the two about the sentence,special public prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam said the accused must be given some time to think about it. He also quoted judgments of the Supreme Court that supported his argument. Taking this into consideration,the court differed pronouncement of the sentence till Monday.

Relatives of Jyotikumari,who were present for the hearing,refused to speak to the media saying they would issue a statement only after the quantum of punishment is pronounced. Lawyer Atul Patil,representing the accused,said an appeal would be made in the Bombay High Court.

The trial had suffered a setback after the arrest of an alleged fake lawyer,Mahendra Kawachale,who had represented the the accused earlier.

Patil,who replaced Kawachale,had then sought re-examination of 24 of the 28 witnesses.