Lifer for wife killer
Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, July 13 2012:
A murder case lingering for nearly a decade has been finally settled today with the Court of Sessions judge, Manipur East sentencing accused Ningthoujam Kuber Singh (56) of Langthabal Kunja for life and Rs 5000 fine with possibility of rigorous improvement for one in case of failure to pay the fine.
According to State Public prosecutor Ng Tejkumar the court took up the case from 2004 onward and featured 30 hearings upto the final judgement day today.
Out of 10 witnesses in the case include the eldest son of kuber, who reportedly clubbed his wife Ahanbi Devi to death with an iron rod on February 15, 2002 night.
Describing the murder as 'cold blooded' crime, the Public Prosecutor said he had actually pressed for capital punishment of the accused, which the court declined and ruled for life sentence on the ground that kuber had been in jail for the last 10 years and 'there is no report from jail authority regarding the aggravating circumstance of the accused and further there is also no record for criminal antecedents of the accused prior to the said incident' .
It is said that on the fateful night of the incident, kuber convinced Ahanbi to get up from bed where she was asleep with two of their children and upon stepping out of the house the accused hit her from behind with an iron rod.
Family members as well as neighbours came to know about the murder of Ahanbi only when Kuber yelled that he killed Ahanbi, recounted Tejkumar.