Kerala court sentences woman to 10 yrs in jail for attempting to kill stepson in 2013

Idukki (Kerala), Dec 20 (PTI) A Kerala court on Friday sentenced a man and his wife to seven and 10 years imprisonment, respectively, for physically abusing their then five-year-old son in 2013 and trying to kill him, leading to the boy suffering from severe physical and mental impairments.

Idukki Additional District Judge Ash K Bal sentenced the father -- Shereef -- to seven years imprisonment for the offence under section 326 (voluntarily causing grievous hurt by dangerous weapons or means) of the IPC and imposed a fine of Rs 50,000.

The court also sentenced the boy's step-mother -- Aneesha -- to 10 years jail term for the offence under section 307 (attempt to murder) of the IPC and imposed a fine of Rs two lakh on her, public prosecutor Rajesh P S told reporters here after the verdict was pronounced.

According to the prosecution, the father and step-mother used to repeatedly physically abuse the child and on July 15, 2013 the then five-year-old Shefeeq was admitted in a hospital with severe injuries to the head, burns and broken bones.

As a result of the injuries he sustained, Shefeeq now suffers from severe physical and mental impairments and behaves like a small child, Ragini, the nurse who took care of him since 2013, told TV channels.

"I have to take care of his every need. He is still like an infant," she said.

After the sentence was pronounced, she said that she wanted the most stringent punishment for the husband and wife as they tried to kill the small boy.

The prosecutor told reporters that the prosecution was satisfied with the sentence given to the couple.

He said that the maximum sentence under section 307 of IPC was life term, but the court may have taken a lenient view towards Aneesha as she was a woman, a mother of five children and in poor financial condition.

"We had sought life imprisonment for her," he added. PTI HMP HMP KH