Vismaya case: Husband Kiran Kumar sentenced to 10 years imprisonment, 12.5 lakh fine

 

Kollam: S Kiran Kumar was sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment by the Kollam Additional Sessions Court-1 on Tuesday, over the death of his wife Vismaya on charges of dowry harassment and abetment to suicide. He was found guilty by the court on Monday. Kiran Kumar was awarded 10 year imprisonment based on 304B besides 6 year imprisonment under section 306. The court also slapped a fine of Rs 12.5 lakh on him under various sections.

The verdict was declared in the suicide and domestic violence case that shook Kerala after a 4 months-long trial. Kiran Kumar requested the court to spare him from maximum punishment as he was the lone support for his elderly parents. When the court asked him if he has anything to state, Kiran said that his father was suffering from memory loss and that his mother would be left without a support if he was sentenced. Kiran added that his mother was a diabetic patient with high blood pressure. The convict’s councel requested the court to avoid giving him a life sentence considering his age.

Stressing the gravity of the crime, the prosecution had argued that the suicide was almost akin to murder and demanded the maximum punishment for the convict. By quoting a Supreme Court verdict, the defendant pointed out that life imprisonment cannot be given in a suicide case. They added that suicide cannot be seen as murder. This was not the first dowry-related case. Therefore, life imprisonment should be avoided based on his situation, the defendant argued. The prosecution said that this was not just a case against an individual but all dowry related issues in society.

Read more: Vismaya’s husband Kiran Kumar found guilty over dowry harassment charges

As a government employee, he misused his stature and demanded the dowry. He tortured Vismaya mentally and physically only for the dowry. Her suicide was equal to that of murder, the prosecution said. The prosecution also played an audio clip of a conversation between Vismaya and her mother. The case noted that Vismaya’s suicide was urged by the physical and mental tortures that she sustained from her husband’s house.