Batla House encounter case: Delhi HC converts death penalty of Ariz Khans to life imprisonment
The trial court had argued that Khan's offense was not an ordinary act but a crime against the state. Khan was declared a proclaimed offender after he fled the scene of the crime but was eventually arrested on February 14, 2018.
FollowThe Delhi High Court on Thursday (October 12) commuted the death penalty imposed on Ariz Khan to life imprisonment. The trail court had sentenced Ariz Khan to death for the murder of Delhi Police Inspector Mohan Chand Sharma. This decision was delivered by a bench of Justices Siddharth Mridul and Amit Sharma.
The trial court had convicted Khan on March 8, 2021, and stated that it was conclusively proven that he and his associates were responsible for the killing of the police officer and had fired gunshots at him. On March 15, 2021, the trial court had sentenced Khan to capital punishment and imposed a fine of Rs 11 lakh.
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Following this, the high court received a reference for the confirmation of Khan's death sentence. When a trial court sentences an individual to death, the high court examines the judgment and arguments for the confirmation of the sentence.
In its judgment, the trial court had described Khan's act of firing upon a police party without provocation as "abhorrent and brutal." This characterization indicated that Khan was not only a threat to society but also an enemy of the state.
The trial court had argued that Khan's offense was not an ordinary act but a crime against the state. Khan was declared a proclaimed offender after he fled the scene of the crime but was eventually arrested on February 14, 2018.
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On September 19, 2008, an encounter took place between the police and terrorists in south Delhi's Jamia Nagar, resulting in the killing of Inspector Mohan Chand Sharma. During the encounter, as many as two terrorists were also killed, which occurred shortly after five synchronized bomb explosions in the national capital, leading to 39 fatalities and 159 injuries.
