6 min readPuneJun 30, 2026 09:46 AM IST
First published on: Jun 29, 2026 at 12:43 PM IST
Observing that ‘even the punishment of death may not be adequate’, a special fast-track court in Pune Monday sentenced a 65-year-old man to death for the rape and murder of a three-year-old girl, less than 60 days after the crime, holding that the case fell in the “rarest of the rare” category.
Special Judge S R Salunkhe awarded three death sentences, ruling that “the judicial conscience of this court leads to the irresistible conclusion that the only punishment the accused can deserve is the death sentence. The accused deserves maximum punishments provided for all the offences which are conclusively proved by the prosecution, including the death sentence for three offences under section 103(1) (murder) and 65(2) (rape on a woman under twelve years of age) of the BNS and under section 6 of the POCSO Act. As the death sentence cannot be executed consecutively, it is to be awarded concurrently.”
“A man of 65 years of age, having seven married daughters and a son lures a child of three years of age, saying her to show her a calf and give her sweet gathi shev and commits aggravated sexual assaults on her… and kills her due to resistance and even after killing her, he sexually assaults her. Needless to say that the behaviour of the accused was uncommon and punishment of life imprisonment for such crime would be grossly inadequate. Even the punishment of death may not be adequate but it is the greater punishment that can be awarded for such a crime,” the court observed in its judgment.
The act of the convict was “brutal, inhuman and barbaric”, said the court as it observed that the crime did not just shock the judicial conscience but also the public conscience. The court cited incidents of rape in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kathua and Unnao in Uttar Pradesh in the judgment, in the observations about brutal crimes and subsequent public outrage. This incident too had caused massive public outrage with people blocking the Pune Bangalore Highway for several hours.
The convict was produced before the court under tight police security at 11 am as the courtroom filled with family members of the victim, lawyers, journalists, and members of the public. The judge read out key parts of the judgment for over an hour. The victim’s parents and family members broke down after Special Judge Salunkhe announced the sentence. On June 25, the court had convicted the man and posted the matter for sentencing Monday. Special Public Prosecutor Ajay Misar, investigating officer Inspector Vijaymala Pawar, and Sandeep Singh Gill, Superintendent of Police, Pune Rural, were present in the court.
“The brutality of the crime, the manner by which it was committed and inhuman behaviour of the accused with a child of three years takes him away from thinking of any alternative to death sentence and the possibility of awarding life imprisonment, which is the normal rule is unquestionably foreclosed in this case. This case will definitely come under the category of ‘rarest of the rare cases’,” the court observed.
Last seen together theory
The victim girl, who was was visiting her grandmother’s house, was raped and murdered on the afternoon of May 1. The accused lured her and took her to a cowshed. He then raped the girl, gagged her with a cloth and then killed by brutally assaulting her with his hands. He then tried to destroy the evidence of his crime by dumping her body in the cowshed.
The court observed, “The presence of the accused with the victim in proximity of the time of death of the victim has been clearly proved. Thus, the ‘last seen together’ theory has also been established. The prosecution has conclusively proved by medical evidence, electronic evidence and the forensic evidence that the accused was that person who has sexually assaulted the victim and he has committed her murder and tried disappearance of the evidence by concealing her dead body under a gunny bag in tin sheet shed,” the court observed.
Testimony of child witnesses
The court observed, “The story put up by the accused does not inspire confidence and that can be straight away thrown away. The version of three children was natural and it inspires confidence. The last scream of the child and sound of pelting stones on the shed recorded in CCTV are corroborated by the child witnesses and another witness. All the witnesses relating to the incident have unanimously stated that the accused and the victim were found together at about 3.12 pm on May 1 proceeding towards the tin sheet shed and at about 3.51 pm the accused came from that shed and went towards the public water tank. There was a time gap of 39 minutes.
Thereafter, the victim is found dead in very unfortunate condition in that shed. Her medical evidence showed that she was brutally raped, sexually assaulted and thereafter she was killed. There was evidence of an attempt of sexual assault even after her death. The forensic evidence confirms on the basis of DNA profiling that the accused was the person who had committed those sexual assaults on the victim. All these circumstances leave no room for doubt that the accused has committed the said crime.”
CM, Deputy CMs hail ‘fastest’ verdict
Minutes after the sentence on Monday, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis hailed the verdict as one of the fastest in the state and credited the judiciary, investigators and prosecution for ensuring a swift trial.
“I specifically thank Justice S. R. Salunkhe, who cancelled his vacations and conducted the trial continuously,” Fadnavis told the State Legislative Assembly.
The Chief Minister said the police filed the chargesheet within 14 days of the crime and the trial thereafter moved at an unprecedented pace.
Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde described the judgment as a landmark verdict.
“I wholeheartedly congratulate the judge. The brutal rape and murder of a three-year-old girl is among the rarest of rare cases. The court has delivered a swift verdict that will serve as a benchmark and act as a strong deterrent,” he said.
Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Pawar also termed the judgment “historic” and said it had reinforced public confidence in the justice system.
The act of the accused was brutal, inhuman and barbaric, said the Pune court. (Representative Image) 
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