Pallavi Purkayastha murder case: Convict Sajjad Moghul's life term increased by one year for jumping parole

A Nashik court increased the sentence of the security guard convicted of killing a 25-year-old corporate lawyer Pallavi Purkayastha by one year for jumping parole in 2016, reports said. The court has also imposed a fine of Rs 5,000 on him. If he fails to pay it would increase his jail term by two more months,  Hindustan Times  reported.

Sajjad Moghul, a security guard who had murdered the 25-year-old woman in her Mumbai flat after failed rape attempts, was serving a life sentence since 2014, two years after he confessed to the murder.

He was incarcerated in a jail in Nashik from where he left in March 2016 on parole to visit his unwell mother. However, he never returned and reportedly kept altering his looks and location to evade arrest. The Mumbai crime branch was finally able to re-arrest him from his native place in Jammu and Kashmir in October 2017, 18 months after he skipped parole.

After his escape, the Maharashtra government had decided that rapists and murderers would no longer be granted parole and the number of days of parole was reduced from 90 to 46 days. The jail officer who recommended parole for Mughal was suspended.

Pallavi worked for as an advocate for Excel Entertainment Pvt Ltd. She lived at Himalayan Heights in Wadala along with her boyfriend Avik Sengupta. The building’s security guard, Moghul (22) also known as Sajjad Pathan, deliberately tripped the power twice that night, and stole the keys from Pallavi’s apartment when the electrician came to fix the problem. Sajjad was reported to have bought a knife 15 days prior to the crime and had told other building staff that he planned to scare Pallavi and rape her.

The intercom of the flat wasn’t working and the 4 CCTV cameras were deactivated on the morning of 9 August, 2012. Sajjad is believed to have deactivated these components. Sajjad confessed that his intent was not murder, but rather to rape the 25-year old. When Pallavi aggressively fought back, he used the knife to slash her throat. He was subsequently charged with muder, molestation and trespassing.

The Mumbai Police arrested Sajjad at the Mumbai Central railway terminus the evening after her body was found, before he could catch a train to Surat from where he had planned to flee to Jammu and Kashmir.

Pallavi’s boyfriend Avik Sengupta did not survive to see if justice was served. He died following an illness in November 2013. Police reported that following the murder, Sengupta had also suffered from depression. An investigation by the police found that Sajjad Pathan’s employers, Ahmed Hamid Enterprises, a private security firm, did not have his complete address. This has prompted the requirement for stringent documentation of security guards hired by private firms.

Pallavi’s murder inspired Farhan Akhtar, owner of Excel Entertainment, to start ‘Men Against Rape and Discrimination’ or MARD in 2013. The social campaign has since gained tremendous support from popular celebrities.