MUMBAI: A caretaker and her boyfriend have been sentenced to three life terms for the murder of an elderly couple and the subsequent robbery of their residence in an affluent area of Bandra in 2018. A sessions court announced the ruling on Thursday, determining that the case did not meet the criteria for the death penalty, which is reserved for the “rarest of rare” circumstances.
Additional Sessions Judge VB Bohra imposed life sentences on caretaker Parvati Khaka (26) and her boyfriend Singhasan Ekka (26) for the killings of 85-year-old Nanak and 81-year-old Daya Makhijani, along with charges of inflicting injury during the robbery. Khaka was also sentenced to seven years of rigorous imprisonment for theft by a servant, while Ekka received a 10-year sentence for trespassing. All sentences are to be served concurrently.
The court dismissed the prosecution’s request for capital punishment, emphasizing that the case did not fall within the “rarest of rare” category, particularly as it depended primarily on circumstantial evidence. The judge also took into account the behavior of the defendants while incarcerated and their potential for rehabilitation.
The elderly couple resided alone in the Ekta Elite building at Kokilkunj Co-operative Housing Society, Bandra (West), as their family lived overseas.
Khaka had only started working as their caretaker 15 days before the tragic event.
On June 21, 2018, the building’s watchman, Vimlesh Yadav, notified Satish Bhagwat after there was no response from the couple’s apartment. Bhagwat, along with Yadav, maid Surekha Sable, and another resident, Samranjan Monga, visited the flat. Subhash Khetle, a cleaner, accessed the apartment through an open kitchen window and unlocked the main door.
Upon entering, they discovered Nanak and Daya deceased in bed, their hands and necks bound with a scarf. A blood-stained pillow was found near Daya’s legs, and the scene showed cupboards ransacked with belongings scattered throughout. Valuables, including artificial, silver, and gold jewelry worth approximately Rs 10 lakh and Rs 9,000 in cash, had been stolen.
Police apprehended Khaka and Ekka on June 22, 2018, at Nagpur railway station while they were en route to Odisha on the Gitanjali Express. The authorities recovered stolen jewelry and other items from them, as well as two railway tickets to Dadar purchased at 5:19 am on June 21.
The court based its decision on witness accounts, CCTV evidence, medical reports, recovered items, and the defendants’ behavior. Testimony from beauty salon owner Sueyha Chin confirmed that Khaka had visited Daya at her salon on June 20, the day before the murders. An auto-rickshaw driver, Lavkush Rajbhar, identified Khaka and Ekka as passengers he dropped near Bandra bridge after they requested a ride to Dadar.
Public prosecutor Keshav Salunke presented evidence from 35 witnesses, establishing the “last scene theory” and debunking the defense’s argument that an unknown individual could have entered through the kitchen window.
Khaka claimed she had left for Odisha due to her mother’s illness, asserting that Nanak and Daya had allowed her to depart with Rs 2,000. Ekka echoed this defense. However, the judge dismissed their account, noting that Khaka had summoned Ekka to Mumbai and facilitated his entry into the apartment, and neither had informed anyone of her departure.
