Kerala court sentences man to life imprisonment in doctor Vandana Das murder case

Kollam: A teacher convicted in the sensational murder of Dr Vandana Das inside a hospital here was sentenced to life term on Saturday, and the prosecution said it will move an appeal seeking death penalty for the accused. The victim's family also batted for "maximum punishment".

Dr Das was brutally killed inside a taluk hospital in May 2023 by G Sandeep.

The Kollam Additional District and Sessions Court sentenced Sandeep to a total of 30 years for various offences under the then Indian Penal Code (IPC) and said that after he serves that period, his life imprisonment for Das' murder will commence, SPP Prathap G Padickal told reporters.

The detailed judgement is awaited.

The special public prosecutor said that he will recommend to the prosecution to file an appeal seeking enhancement of the life imprisonment to death penalty.

He said that the prosecution had sought the maximum punishment for Sandeep, "but the court probably felt it was not a rarest-of-rare case" and that is why death penalty was not given.

The victim's father said that the verdict has come as a relief for the family, but he cannot authoritatively say whether his daughter has got justice.

He indicated his dissatisfaction with the punishment, saying that steps will be taken to seek its enhancement after discussions with the public prosecutor.

Dr Das' mother said that the family can only wish for the maximum punishment and it was up to the court to decide what sentence should be given.

She said that the family will go in appeal, but declined to comment on whether her daughter got justice.

She tearfully said that she wants the convict to suffer the same pain that her daughter underwent "as he stabbed her 27 times".

The court on March 17 had convicted Sandeep for various offences under the IPC, including murder, destruction of evidence and wrongful restraint.

It had also held him guilty under the provisions of the Kerala Healthcare Service Persons and Healthcare Service Institutions (Prevention of violence and damage to property) Act 2012.

Sandeep was brought to the taluk hospital by the police for medical treatment during the small hours of May 10, 2023 and he went on a sudden attacking spree using a pair of surgical scissors kept in the room where his leg injury was being dressed.

A school teacher by profession, he had initially attacked the police officers and a private person who had accompanied him to the hospital and then turned on the young Dr Das, who could not escape to safety.

She was stabbed several times and later succumbed to her injuries in a private hospital in Thiruvananthapuram where she was rushed following the attack.

Dr Das was a native of the Kaduthuruthy area of Kottayam district and the only child of her parents.

She was a house surgeon at Azeezia Medical College Hospital and was working at the Kottarakkara taluk hospital as part of her training.

Sandeep had called the emergency number 112, claiming that his life was in danger. When local police located him, he was standing close by his home, surrounded by local residents and his relatives, and had a wound on his leg following an alleged quarrel.

He was then taken to the hospital for dressing the wound.