Man accused of killing foster mother acquitted after 9 years 9 months in jail

Adivision bench of the High Court of Karnataka has released a man who was in jail for 9 years 9 months and 11 days, acquitting him from the charge of murdering his foster mother. Krishna was arrested on January 22, 2013 on the allegation of murdering Kanakambaram, his foster mother.

Kanakambaram’s husband had died 17 years earlier and she had adopted Krishna, who was the son of her late husband’s elder brother. Kanakambaram was found dead at her home on January 21, 2013 and based on the complaint by her brother, Krishna was arrested. It was alleged that he had killed her to steal her jewellery.

A Sessions Court, which conducted the trial, convicted Krishna and sentenced him to life imprisonment. An appeal was filed in the High Court of Karnataka against this conviction. A division bench comprising Justice B Veerappa and Justice Hemalekha, which heard this appeal, acquitted Krishna on November 4, 2022. Senior advocate CH Hanumantaraya argued the case for Krishna.

It was pointed out that there were no eyewitnesses to the crime and the entire allegation is based on personal statements of relatives of the deceased. The preliminary investigation of the case was conducted by a police subinspector, which is against guidelines prescribed in the Karnataka Police Manual, the advocate argued.

Jewels recovered from Krishna were also not proved to have belonged to the deceased. Accepting the arguments, the HC acquitted the accused who had already spent nearly a decade in jail.