Nitish Katara murder: SC rejects death sentence plea, says it wasn't honour killing

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday rejected a plea by Neelam Katara seeking enhancement of sentence to death for Vishal and Vikas Yadav who have been convicted for murdering her son Nitish Katara in February 2002. An apex court bench of Justice Jagdish Singh Khehar and Justice R Banumati said that while it was a murder and could even be pre-meditated, it certainly was not heinous or a matter of honour killing. Neelam Katara had moved the SC questioning Delhi High Court order sentencing both Vikas and Vishal Yadav to 25 and five years sentences which are to be run one after the other. [caption id=“attachment_2462292” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Nitish Katara. Agencies[/caption] She sought enhancement of the sentence to death or alternatively imprisonment for whole life. According to the High Court order, both the Yadav brothers are to undergo a sentence of 30 years each. In August, the Supreme Court upheld the conviction of Vikas Yadav, Vishal Yadav and Sukhdev Pehalwan in connection with the 2002 Nitish Katara murder case. The apex court had said that “only criminals are crying for justice” in this country. The Supreme court, which upheld the findings of the trial court and the Delhi High Court without issuing notices on the appeals of Vikas and Sukhdev, however, agreed to consider the limited aspect relating to enhancement of quantum of sentence of the three convicts by the Delhi High Court. It, however, issued notice to the Delhi government on the scope of punishment and sought the reply within six weeks. Nitish Katara was 25 when he was burnt to death in Ghaziabad near Delhi. He was dating Bharti Yadav, daughter of politician DP Yadav.  The young couple was attending a wedding party when Mr Katara was abducted and set on fire by Bharti’s brother Vikas and her cousin Vishal. With inputs from PTI and IANS.