On the morning of April 28, 2016, the mutilated corpse of the victim, Jisha, who was a student at the Ernakulam Government Law College, was found in her house at Perumbavoor. The incident provoked mass outrage. The case also acquired a casteist undertone, as Jisha’s family lamented their apparent ill-treatment by neighbours in the area.
Ameerul, a migrant worker from Assam, was eventually hauled up and accused of having committed the crime after allegedly breaking into Jisha’s house in a drunken stupor the night before.
In December 2017, the Ernakulam Sessions Court found Ameerul guilty of all offences charged against him, save for those under Section 201 of the Indian Penal Code (causing disappearance of evidence) and charges under Scheduled Caste/ Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 2015.
The Sessions Court sentenced him to death and also imposed four terms of rigorous imprisonment which were to run concurrently.
Subsequently, Ameerul moved an appeal before the High Court challenging his conviction and sentence. He also sought a re-investigation by a central agency.
The High Court dismissed his appeal on May 20.
Source: Barandbench
