Life imprisonment and 32 years extra jail time for Sandeep in Vandana Das murder case

The Kollam Additional Sessions Court on Saturday delivered the judgement in the Dr. Vandana Das murder case, sentencing the convict, G. Sandeep to life imprisonment along with an additional 32 years of rigorous imprisonment under various sections of the Indian Penal Code.

Judge P.N. Vinod, while pronouncing the verdict, specified that the convict must serve 20 years of jail terms before his life imprisonment sentence even begins, effectively ensuring that he remains behind bars for the remainder of his natural life. In addition to the prison terms, the court imposed a total fine of ₹2.35 lakh on the convict.
The court awarded life imprisonment and a fine of ₹1 lakh for the murder of the young house surgeon. For the attempted murder of the third witness, Home Guard Alex Kutty, Sandeep received 10 years of rigorous imprisonment and a ₹50,000 fine, followed by another 10 years and a ₹25,000 fine for causing grievous hurt. The verdict also included six-month jail terms each for assaulting Sub-Inspector Manilal and ambulance driver Rajesh, and a three-month term for the assault on Sub-Inspector Baby Mohan.
Additionally, the court has ordered a two-year prison sentence for obstructing the official duties of the third witness, Alex Kutty. For obstructing the official duties of the fourth, fifth, and eleventh witnesses Manilal, Rajesh, and Baby Mohan the convict was sentenced to three months of imprisonment each. Furthermore, the verdict includes a one-month sentence for the wrongful restraint of Dr. Vandana, two years of imprisonment and a ₹10,000 fine for the destruction of evidence, and a five-year prison sentence along with a ₹50,000 fine for committing violence within the hospital premises.
Completely rejecting the defense’s plea of insanity, the court upheld the prosecution’s argument that the convict’s role as a school teacher at the time of the incident and shortly before it discredited the defense’s claim of mental illness. The court also dismissed the defense’s attempt to portray Sandeep’s erratic behaviour during his initial detention such as crawling under a police jeep as a sign of mental instability, instead agreeing with the prosecution that these were calculated pressure tactics. Furthermore, medical evidence from the jail confirmed that the medications administered to him were not for the treatment of any major psychiatric disorder.
While the court found the evidence against Sandeep to be overwhelming and the testimonies of the injured witnesses credible, it ultimately ruled that the crime did not fall under the ‘rarest-of-rare’ category required for the death penalty. Special Public Prosecutor Prathap G. Padickal, assisted by a legal team, led the case for the prosecution.