Nearly 5 years after Keenan Santos and Reuben Fernandez were stabbed to death for protecting the honour of their woman friends, the 4 accused have been convicted for life.
Additional Sessions Judge Vrushali Joshi, who presided over a special women’s court in Mumbai on Thursday, passed the conviction order against the 4 accused — Jitendra Rana, Sunil Bodh, Satish Dulhaj and Dipak Tival.
They were guilty of murder, outraging the modesty of women and other charges of the Indian Penal Code, Special Public Prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam said.
The family members of Keenan and Reuben had not pressed for capital punishment and pressed for full life term in jail. “It is not a rarest of the rare case,” Nikam told reporters outside the court.
Speaking about the case and the deposition of the 2 victim girls, he said: “There is direct evidence to show that the accused were eve-teasing and molesting girls when the victims tried to stop it. This is a pre-determined murder and the accused had even threatened them with their life and had come back with weapons to attack them after some time… the evidence of the two girls have bolstered the case."
Flashback
On October 20, 2011, a group of 7 youths (including the 2 victims) had gone to enjoy the telecast of India-England ODI at Amboli Bar and Kitchen, a bar-cum-restaurant at Andheri suburbs here.
After the match, the group stopped at a paan shop just outside the restaurant where 3 men led by one Jitendra Rana started passing lewd comments about the women in the group. Santos and Fernandes confronted Rana and his friends and shooed them away. But minutes later, Rana returned with a group. Santos was stabbed in the abdomen and Fernandes was beaten with bamboo sticks and stabbed. Both Santos and Fernandes had put up a brave defence. The incident took place between 10 pm and 10.30 pm. None of the passersby helped them and neither the staff of the restaurant come out in their support. Keenan died the same night and Reuben a few days later.