Pune man gets seven years jail for feeding wife capsules containing blade pieces

A Pune sessions court has sentenced a 45-year-old man to seven years of rigorous imprisonment for attempting to murder his wife by allegedly feeding her capsules containing pieces of a blade under the pretext of giving her medicine.

In the October 23 order, which was made available on Monday, the court also sentenced the accused husband, identified as Somnath Sadhu Sapkal, to three years of rigorous imprisonment for cruelty, with both sentences to run concurrently.

Additional Sessions Judge Aniruddha Sulabha Subhash Gandhi convicted the accused under Sections 307 (attempt to murder) and 498A (cruelty by husband or his relatives) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). The court imposed fines of ₹50,000 and ₹20,000, respectively.

The case

The case arose from a complaint by Sapkal's wife, Chhaya, who alleged that her husband had been giving her capsules containing blade pieces under the pretext of administering medicine. The incidents reportedly occurred between October 2023 and November 8, 2023. Uttamnagar police registered a first information report on November 14, 2023.

According to the prosecution, the woman experienced stomach pain in October 2023 and noticed a piece of a blade passing through her stool. A similar incident occurred later. On November 8, she was taken to hospital with severe abdominal pain. Doctors subsequently removed a blade piece from her stomach through an endoscopic procedure.

The prosecution examined seven witnesses, including the complainant, her son, the treating doctor, a medical shop owner, panch witnesses and the investigating officer.

Although the complainant and her son did not fully support the prosecution during the trial, the court relied on the medical evidence, the recovery of blade pieces and capsules from the accused's residence, and the testimony of other witnesses.

The judge observed that the court had examined the seized articles during the hearing to determine whether the blade pieces could fit inside the capsules.

“It was found that the pieces of the blade could be bent and placed inside the capsules. Therefore, it is clearly established that pieces of a blade could be administered to a person through capsules,” the judge observed.

The court noted that a medical shop owner, Ganesh Chaudhary, had testified that Sapkal purchased a packet of Almox 500 capsules from him. The prosecution also established that the police had seized the capsule packet and two steel blade pieces from a divan at the accused's residence pursuant to his statement.

Medical evidence was central to the court's findings. Dr Poonam Mantri, who treated the complainant, testified that the blade piece found in the woman's stomach posed a threat to her life.

The judgement

Under the final order, the accused Sapkal was sentenced to seven years of rigorous imprisonment and fined ₹50,000 under Section 307. He was also sentenced to three years of rigorous imprisonment and fined ₹20,000 under Section 498A. Both sentences will run concurrently. The court also directed that he receive the statutory set-off for the period already spent in custody.

Referring to the doctor's testimony, the judge observed, “The pieces of the blade that had entered the complainant's stomach posed a danger to her life, and she could also have died as a result.”

The court concluded that administering capsules containing blade pieces amounted to an attempt to murder and constituted cruelty under Section 498A of the IPC.

“Feeding capsules containing pieces of a blade to the complainant amounts to an attempt to murder,” the judge held.

The court further noted that the accused had allegedly given his wife the capsules over a period of approximately two months and concluded that the prosecution had established the charges under Sections 307 and 498A.

However, the court found insufficient evidence to establish the separate allegations that Sapkal had assaulted and abused his wife. It acquitted him of charges under Sections 323 (voluntarily causing hurt) and 504 (intentional insult intended to provoke a breach of peace) of the IPC.

During the sentencing hearing, the defence argued that Sapkal was the sole earning member of his family and that his wife was living with him and dependent on him. The court considered these submissions while deciding the punishment.

The judge noted the seriousness of the offence but decided against imposing life imprisonment, opting instead for fixed terms of rigorous imprisonment.