Daijiworld Media Network - Kundapur (SP)

Kundapur, Feb 5: The first ever death sentence awarded in Udupi district has been stayed by the state high court (HC). The HC has stayed operation of a death sentence awarded to Satish, who was accused of murdering a girl named Akkayya alias Lata from Noojady village in the taluk, after an appeal against the quantum of sentence was filed by the advocate representing the accused.

Lata, a girl from Noojady, had been murdered on July 3, 2010. After conducting hearing in the case for four years and taking into account strong arguments presented by public prosecutor, Srinivas Hegde, the then additional district and sessions judge, Rajashekhar V Patil, had pronounced judgement awarding death penalty to the accused.

Lata Poojary was working as conductor in-charge of a school bus operated by Venkataramana English Medium School here. She was poor and was a pillar of support for the family. She went missing on July 3, 2010, and her body was found the next day. On the basis of information collected from her cellphone calls, Hemmady Satish, who was running a shop, was arrested. Although he was married, Satish had befriended Lata. After she came to know that he was married, there was misunderstanding between the two. Satish, who had developed physical relationship with her, had planned to murder her as he visualized danger to his married life from her in future.

Some people had seen Satish driving away Lata in his Maruti Omni car at around 1.30 pm on July 3, 2010 from near Mescom office at Tallur towards Maravante beach. After reaching Maravante, he tightened Lata's veil around her neck and killed her. He left her body inside the van and operated the shop as usually till the evening. At dusk, he threw away Lata's vanity bag,  took away the gold ornaments on her body, kept her cellphone at a spot, and disposed off her body in a thicket by the side of Kulur road at Kundabarandady village. A police team led by the then circle inspector, Madan Gaonkar, had arrested the accused the next day. The court considered the criminal mindset of the accused in killing a human being because of danger to his family life, disposal of body in a planned and cold-blooded manner etc before concluding that it was the rarest of rare cases.

Advocate, Ravikiran Murudeshwar, who is representing the accused, said that on behalf of Satish, who is currently lodged in Hindalga jail at Belagavi, Bengaluru-based advocate, C  Nagesh, had filed appeal in the high court against death sentence. He said that the case will be heard and a judgement is expected to be delivered soon.