Uber cab driver Shiv Kumar Yadav (32), who raped a 25-year-old woman passenger in December last year, was on Tuesday sentenced to life in prison till death by a city court, which also imposed a fine o
Uber cab driver Shiv Kumar Yadav (32), who raped a 25-year-old woman passenger in December last year, was on Tuesday sentenced to life in prison till death by a city court, which also imposed a fine of Rs 21,000 on him. The court also observed that his acts were “against the society” and should be dealt with an “iron hand”.
During the argument on quantum of sentence, special public prosecutor Atul Srivastava had sought maximum punishment for Yadav, saying he committed a heinous crime and, hence, he did not deserve any leniency. “Rape murders soul of a person. We need to see the manner in which the act was executed. Only the woman is not the victim, but the whole society is victim here. So, I request that maximum punishment is given to him,” Mr Srivastava said.
D.K. Mishra, appearing for Yadav, contended that his client had no previous record and, hence, he should have been given a chance to reform. “Yadav is falsely implicated in the case. He was acquitted in all the cases lodged against him,” Mr Mishra argued.
“Convict (Yadav) is sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for life which shall mean imprisonment till his remaining natural life for the offence under Section 376 (2)(m) (committing rape causes grievous bodily harm) of the IPC,” additional sessions judge Kaveri Baweja said.
The court also directed the Delhi Legal Services Authority to give compensation to the victim and to take care of the family of the convict.
The judge further said, “The sentence in this case, must therefore, serve as a step towards the effort to put and end to commission of such crimes against the women in our country. Every woman needs to feel secure in her motherland, which necessarily demands dealing with such offenders with an iron hand.”
Yadav was stunned after being awarded life term. His family members, including his ailing wife, father and two minor daughters, who were present at the courtroom broke down after hearing the judgment. His wailing wife also fainted in the courtroom.
“We are disappointed with the court verdict. Yadav has been wrongly punished,” his wife said. According to the prosecution, the incident took place on the night of December 5 when the 25-year-old victim, a finance executive working in Gurgaon, was heading home. The woman had taken the taxi from Vasant Vihar to return home in north Delhi’s Inderlok, but accused Shiv Kumar Yadav took another route and raped her. Yadav was arrested on December 7 from Mathura.
