11yo's testimony sends man to life in jail for killing father-in-law

Agra: A court in Aligarh has sentenced a 27-year-old local resident to life in prison for the murder of his father-in-law, 55, over a property dispute in 2023. The crucial testimony of the victim's 11-year-old son who claimed he saw his father walking away with the accused and not coming back helped in the case conviction, district govt counsel Jitendra Singh said on Saturday.

The court of district and sessions judge Sanjeev Kumar also imposed a fine of Rs 25,000 on the convict who was taken into police custody and sent to jail.

On Jan 31, 2023, Mohan Kumar, 27, strangled Dan Singh, 55, to death. In his police complaint, Dan's brother, Harpal Singh, stated that his elder brother stepped out after receiving a phone call but didn't return until late at night. The next morning, Singh was found lying dead in a pit near a canal in Harduaganj police limits.

A case was subsequently registered under IPC sections 302 (murder), 201 (disappearance of evidence...) and 120-B (criminal conspiracy).

During the investigation, it was found that Singh was last seen with his son-in-law, and he along with his associates were picked for questioning. Mohan was then arrested and a few weeks later, police submitted a charge sheet in the court.

After hearing both sides and examining the evidence, including the boy's testimony, the court pronounced its judgment on Friday. Mohan's associates, who were also named in the charge sheet, were acquitted due to "lack of evidence".