SC stays the death penalty of a rape convict who ripped the vagina of a 5-year-old girl, orders his psychological evaluation

The Supreme Court on Tuesday (10th March) stayed the death penalty of a man accused of raping and killing a 5-year-old girl in the Shahjahanabad area of Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh. A bench of Justices Vikram Nath, Sandeep Mehta and N. V. Anjaria allowed the leave to appeal from the Madhya Pradesh High Court, which upheld his conviction and approved the death penalty for him. The court stayed his death penalty till the consideration of his appeal by it. While staying the death penalty till the consideration of the appeal by it, the top court directed the production of records of the case, the reports of Probation Officers, reports relating to the work performed by the convict, his behaviour inside the jail and a report on his psychological evaluation. The accused had filed a petition before the Supreme Court requesting leave to appeal against the Madhya Pradesh High Court passed on January 22, 2026. In its judgment, the Division Bench of Justices Vivek Agarwal and Ramkumar Choubey dismissed the criminal appeal filed by the accused and upheld the decision of the trial court, a Special POSCO Court at Bhopal. The trial court, in its judgment dated March 10, 2025, convicted the accused named Atul Nihale of raping and killing the 5-year-old victim and granted him a death penalty. Observations of the High Court Accused enlarged the victim’s vagins using a knife: HC During the hearing of the appeal filed by the accused against his conviction and sentencing by the Special POCSO Court, the High Court examined all the material and evidence that was considered during the trial of the case. The High Court pointed out the barbaric manner in which the accused sexually exploited and murdered the innocent child. “This Court found that the appellant/accused has committed a heinous crime with a girl aged five years, who was unable to resist, and after gagging her mouth, appellant/accused used a knife meant for culinary tasks, for enlarging the entrance of the vagina, to penetrate,” the High Court noted in its judgment. The barbarity of the act is dripping down from every ounce of evidence: HC The High Court highlighted the unimaginable pain that the girl-child must have gone through before succumbing to her injuries, while the accused was violating her. “He caused as many as 10 injuries, including penetration in the pelvic region, a very serious cause of death. Use of a knife inside the vagina to enlarge it for easing penetration in an infant girl is a barbarous act of lusty mind. One can imagine the plight of a deceased girl child when she was sexually penetrated and how, in parts, she would have breathed her last, feeling the excruciating pain in a state of helplessness, ” the High Court stated in its judgment, adding that “this shows that a barbarity of act is dripping down from every ounce of evidence”. While dismissing his plea, the High Court also took note of the criminal antecedents of the accused, who was previously convicted of an offence punishable under the Indian Penal Code and had five criminal cases pending against him. The accused was not suffering from any mental disorder at the time of committing the crime: HC The High examined the medical records of the accused and found that he was not suffering from any kind of mental disorder or illness, which could have affected his capacity to understand his actions. “It is evident from the record that the learned trial Court has examined Dr Rahul Sharma (CW-1) in this regard, who has categorically answered the questions put forth on behalf of the appellant/accused and clarified that during the examination, it appeared that the appellant/ accused was not in the state of bipolar mood disorder,” the High Court noted. “In fact, it was not proved that the appellant/accused was suffering from any such mental disorder or illness that impaired his capacity to understand his actions. Furthermore, after evaluating the evidence, the trial court correctly observed that the appellant/accused remained in a fit state of mind and was quite able to defend,” the Court added. Background of the case The case arose from a complaint filed by the minor victim’s mother on September 24, 2024, at the Shahjahanabad Police Station in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, after her daughter went missing. On September 26, 2024, after two days of intensive search operation, the police noticed a foul smell coming from Flat F-2 of Block No.A-1, Bajpai Nagar, Eidgah Hills, Bhopal, which was occupied by the family of the accused. When the police personnel tried to enter the flat to find out the source of the foul smell, they were resisted by the accused’s mother and sister. The cops forced their way into the house and started conducting a search, during which they found a white plastic tank kept in the bathroom containing the body of a girl-child. Several incriminating articles, including blood-stained clothes and a knife, were also recovered by the police from the flat. A case was registered by the police under the relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act. The parents of the victim identified the body of the girl. An autopsy of the body was conducted by a team of three doctors of the Forensic Department of All India Institute of Medical Science (AIIMS), Bhopal, which revealed sexual assault and homicidal death. The forensic examination of the seized articles confirmed the involvement of the accused in the heinous crime beyond any doubt. Based on the evidence and the testimonies of witnesses, the accused was convicted by the Special POCSO Court under Sections 87,103, 238(a) of the BNS, along with Sections 65(2) of BNS r/w 5(m)/6 of POCSO Act, 64(2)(1) of BNS r/w 5(j)(i)/6 of POCSO Act, 64(2)(m) of BNS r/w 5(1)(6) of POCSO Act, snd 66 of BNS r/w 5(j)(iv)/6 of POCSO Act.