LI Network
Published on: 29 July 2023 at 22:35 IST
The Bombay High Court, under the jurisdiction of Single-judge Justice Amit Borkar, has granted bail to a man accused of murdering his live-in partner and dismembering her body.
The case in question is titled Hanumant Ashok Shinde v. State of Maharashtra, and it has garnered significant attention since the accused was taken into custody.
The court’s decision to grant bail was based on its observation that the police had failed to collect a crucial DNA sample from the heir of the missing live-in partner.
This DNA sample would have been instrumental in proving whether the recovered body parts belonged to the victim.
Justice Amit Borkar made his stance clear in a 5-page order, highlighting that the identification of the decomposed body would need to be established during the trial. However, the current evidence on record did not sufficiently support the continued detention of the accused at this stage.
The investigation into the case began when the Pune police received a missing person’s complaint in August 2021, stating that Rosina Pansare, also known as Kavita Chaudhari, had been missing since August 8, 2021.
During the investigation, the victim’s live-in partner, Hanumant Shinde, became the primary suspect. He was subsequently arrested on August 24, 2021, and charged with serious offenses under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, including murder, robbery, and causing disappearance of evidence.
The prosecution alleged that Shinde had killed his partner, dismembered her body, and disposed of the body parts in different locations.
In 2022, Shinde filed a bail application before the sessions court in Pune, but it was denied on April 29, 2023, due to the heinous nature of the crime and the apparent connection between the body parts found and Shinde’s statements.
Challenging the sessions court’s decision, Shinde approached the Bombay High Court. Represented by Advocate Sana Raees Khan, he argued that there was no DNA report to establish a link between the recovered body parts and his missing partner.
Additionally, Khan contended that the panchnama (a written document of the crime scene) was inadmissible as evidence.
The High Court acknowledged that the admissibility of the panchnama would be determined during the trial. However, it emphasized that the police had indeed failed to obtain crucial DNA samples from the missing partner’s heir.
Considering the likelihood of the trial taking an extended period, the Court ultimately granted bail to the accused.
In his ruling, Justice Borkar pointed out that the applicant had been in custody since August 24, 2021, and with the charges yet to be framed, the trial’s duration seemed uncertain. Taking all factors into account, the Court concluded that Shinde had presented a valid case for release on bail.
Consequently, Hanumant Shinde has been directed to furnish a bail bond of ₹25,000 with sureties, paving the way for his release from custody pending the ongoing trial.