Court upholds man's life term

The Delhi High Court has upheld the life sentence awarded to a man for killing his step-daughter seven years ago, saying his motive was “to sexually exploit” the victim.

Accepting the statement of victim’s mother and sister that the convict’s motive was “to sexually exploit” her, the bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Siddharth Mridul dismissed the appeal of Mehboob Ahmed. “The appeal is accordingly dismissed. Conviction and sentence awarded are upheld and maintained,” the bench said.

The court passed the order relying on the testimony of victim’s mother who had alleged that her husband had sexual contact with her daughter. She added that her husband had threatened to divorce her if she told anyone about his conduct.