LUCKNOW: A court in Auraiya on Wednesday sentenced former Samajwadi Party MLC Kamlesh Pathak and nine others to life imprisonment with rigorous imprisonment in a 2020 double murder case involving the shooting deaths of an advocate and his sister.The court also imposed a fine of Rs 50,000 on each of the 10 convicts.The sentence was pronounced by ADJ MP-MLA court Vinay Kumar Singh.The accused were held guilty under the charges of IPC 302 (murder), 307 (attempt to murder), and other charges rioting, rioting with deadly weapons .The verdict was delivered under the Uttar Pradesh Police’s Operation Conviction, an initiative aimed at ensuring quality investigation, effective prosecution and close monitoring of serious criminal cases.Auraiya Police said sustained efforts by the investigating officers, prosecution team and case-monitoring personnel resulted in the conviction.The case relates to the killing of advocate Manjul Chaubey and his sister Sudha following a dispute over the control of a Panchmukhi temple in AuraiyaAccording to the police, a dispute had broken out over the occupation/control of the temple located in the complainant’s locality.The confrontation subsequently turned violent, during which Manjul and Sudha were shot dead.The complaint was lodged by Ashish Kumar, son of Arvind Kumar and a resident of Mohalla Narayanpur, at Kotwali Auraiya police station.On the basis of the complaint, police registered Case Crime No. 189/2020 on March 15, 2020, under Sections 147, 148, 149, 302, 307 and 506 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 7 of the Criminal Law Amendment Act, 1932.The FIR named Kamlesh Pathak, Ramu Pathak, Santosh Pathak, Kuldeep Awasthi, Vikalp Awasthi, Rajesh Shukla Bhagwatacharya, Avnish Pratap Singh and Chhotu, besides three unidentified persons.Police subsequently arrested the accused and sent them to judicial custody.“During the investigation, officers collected evidence and, on the basis of the material gathered, submitted a charge sheet before the competent court. The case was thereafter continuously monitored to ensure that witnesses and other evidence were produced before the court on the scheduled dates,” said Abhishek Bharti, SP, Auraiya.According to Auraiya Police, the Kotwali Auraiya police team, head constable Vinay Kumar, the monitoring team and prosecution officer Chandrabhushan Tiwari played a role in ensuring effective prosecution.Witnesses were produced before the court as required and other evidence collected during the investigation was also presented.The 10 convicts sentenced by the court are Kamlesh Pathak, former SP MLC; Ramu Pathak; Santosh Pathak; Kuldeep Awasthi alias Pappu; Vikalp Awasthi alias Chainu Awasthi; Rajesh Shukla Bhagwatacharya; Avnish Pratap Singh; Ashish Dubey; Shivam Awasthi; and Ravindra alias Lalla Chaubey.Police records identify Kamlesh Pathak as the son of Ram Avtar Pathak and a resident of Bhadaripur under Kotwali Auraiya, while Ramu Pathak and Santosh Pathak are also sons of Ram Avtar Pathak and residents of Bhadaripur.Kuldeep Awasthi alias Pappu and Vikalp Awasthi alias Chainu Awasthi are sons of Jagdish Prasad and residents of Mohalla Vidhichandra in Auraiya.Rajesh Shukla Bhagwatacharya, son of Ramkesh Shukla, is a resident of Mohalla Brahmnagar.Avnish Pratap Singh, son of Ajab Singh, is a resident of Gumanpur under Rijor police station in Etah.Ashish Dubey, son of Vijay Kumar Dubey, is a resident of Homeganj, Auraiya, while Shivam Awasthi, son of Umesh Awasthi, is a resident of Mohalla Vidhichandra.Ravindra alias Lalla Chaubey, son of Subedar, is a resident of Bhadaripur, Auraiya.According to the Auraiya Police, 41 cases had previously been registered against the former SP MLC Kamlesh Pathak.
