Chitradurga judge’s 2nd feat: Convicts man in 13 days of murder

BENGALURU: In back-to-back speedy judgments, Chitradurga principal district and sessions court judge SB Vastramutt on Monday convicted a man of murdering his wife in front of their three-and-a-half-year-old older son and sentenced him to life term in jail within 13 days of the crime.
The child’s evidence played a crucial role in fast-tracking the conviction. Brought face to face with his father on Monday, he asked his father in the open court: “Why did you kill my mother?”
On Saturday, Judge Vastramutt had convicted a 75-year-old man for murdering his wife 11 days after the crime.
Sridhar, 35, a labourer, murdered his wife Sakamma, 31, suspecting her fidelity on June 27 at their house in Baggalurangavvanahalli village, Turuvanur hobli, Challakere taluk. The couple’s year-old younger son was asleep, while the older son was awake and saw the crime. The child ran out in the middle of the night and told his aunt Manjula living next door that his father had killed his mother. She asked him to go to sleep but he continued to weep. Later, Manjula’s husband went to Sridhar’s house and saw Sakamma lying in a pool of blood.
The older son was among 38 witness produced by the prosecution. Turuvanuru polic sub-inspector D G Srinivas filed the FIR and arrested Sridhar. Chitradurga Rural inspector and investigating officer Shiva Kumar filed the chargesheet on June 29.
Judge Vastramutt told Sridhar to be good to his children after coming out of jail and not be vengeful. The judge said he’d write to the state government, seeking financial help for the convict’s children.
Sridhar requested the judge to allow him to meet his children before going to jail and the latter obliged. While Sridhar hugged his younger child, the older son kept away and stared at him. But after a while, he too went to his father.
Chitradurga SP Shrinath Joshi said, "The child’s statement played a crucial role in the case. The 36 other witnesses abided by their statements during the trial.”